A MOTORIST has been fined £1,000 and banned from driving for a year for his part in a crash that killed a young motorcyclist. Richard Hayter-Gare, formerly of Woodfields, Stradbroke, near Eye, denied careless driving on March 19 last year when his BMW collided with a motorcycle being ridden by 20-year-old Jack Foreman.

By David Lennard

A MOTORIST has been fined £1,000 and banned from driving for a year for his part in a crash that killed a young motorcyclist.

Richard Hayter-Gare, formerly of Woodfields, Stradbroke, near Eye, denied careless driving on March 19 last year when his BMW collided with a motorcycle being ridden by 20-year-old Jack Foreman.

But, after a day-long trial at Lowestoft Magistrates' Court yesterday, Hayter-Gare, a father-of-two, was found guilty by District Judge David Cooper.

As well as being disqualified from driving, he was also fined £1,000 and ordered to pay £320 costs.

After the hearing, Mr Foreman's father, Nick, said he was pleased with the conviction and sentence.

“I think this is the best result we could have hoped for and that the judge in this case was extremely fair,” he said.

“Nothing will ever bring Jack back to us again and all we can do now is to get on with the rest of our lives as best we can.”

Joanne Eley, prosecuting, told the court the collision happened when Hayter-Gare pulled out of the Woodfields junction on to New Street, Stradbroke, in his BMW estate car. Mr Foreman was thrown from his machine and declared dead at the scene.

Giving evidence Hayter-Gare told the court that he had stopped at the junction and did not see the motorcyclist before pulling out on to the main road.

“I had begun my manoeuvre when I noticed a yellow flash before there was an impact and the air bags in the car deployed,” he said.

Hayter-Gare, whose new address cannot be published due to a court order, said the motorcycle must have been travelling “very fast” at the time of the accident.

However, District Judge Cooper pointed out that Hayter-Gare was in no position to comment on the speed of the motorcycle as he had said he had not seen it.

Pc Andrew Garden, of Bury St Edmunds roads policing unit, said he estimated that the motorcycle would have had to be travelling at between 67mph and 94 mph for it to have been out of sight when Hayter-Gare was at the junction.

“In my opinion this was not a high speed accident and the motorcycle was available to be seen,” he said.

Several witnesses, who all gave their evidence from behind screens, said that in their opinion the motorcycle had been travelling at speeds between 30mph and 35 mph before the accident.

In passing sentence, District Judge Cooper said that a “momentary lapse” in concentration from Hayter-Gare had led to the fatality.

“Motorcycles are more difficult to see and us car drivers have to take extra care,” he said.

He told Mr Foreman's family: “I can imagine only too well what the family of the deceased are going through and feeling that no sentence is hardly sufficient for the loss of a life. I can, however, only do what the law allows me to do.”