Driver who looked down to search for cigarette killed elderly man in motorway pile-up

A driver has been sentenced after causing a fatal motorway pile-up, admitting he was distracted while searching for a cigarette. The collision, which occurred on the M32 near Bristol shortly before 10am on August 22, 2024, resulted in the death of 68-year-old Michael Stone. Jamie Nicholls, 48, crashed his van into the rear of Mr Stone's car at high speed on the Junction 1 exit slip road at Hambrook, Avon and Somerset Police confirmed.

Officers at the scene were told by Nicholls that he "looked down for a cigarette for a second or two seconds". By the time Nicholls looked back up, he was unable to brake his vehicle to avoid Mr Stone's blue Peugeot, which was stationary in a queue of traffic. The impact propelled the Peugeot into a third car, triggering further collisions involving a fourth and fifth vehicle.

Mr Stone, from Longwell Green, tragically died at the scene, and several other individuals sustained injuries in the multi-vehicle crash. A colleague of Mr Stone was a passenger in the car and sustained significant physical injuries, including seven broken ribs and a head injury. Nicholls and another driver also required hospital treatment.

Last month Nicholls, from Otterhampton near Bridgwater, pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving and causing serious injury by careless driving, police said. He was sentenced at Bristol Crown Court on Thursday to 14 months in prison suspended for 18 months, 12 months' disqualification from driving, subject to an extended test, as well as a 60-day curfew, 10 days' rehabilitation, victim surcharge and costs. Penny Stone, in a statement prepared for the court ahead of Nicholls being sentenced, said she assumed her and her husband of 40 years "would have many more years to make memories together".

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Jamie Nicholls was sentenced to 14 months in prison suspended for 18 months and 12 months' disqualification from driving (PA Archive)

She said they had missed out on celebrating significant family occasions, such as the birth of their first grandchild, and "bucket list" holidays.

Mrs Stone also described the pain of telling one of their two daughters what happened, who was in America on her honeymoon at the time. Mrs Stone added: "Mike was the foundation on which our family was built on. "When we gather around the table now there is an empty space where he should be sat, head of the family.

"You knew you were safe when Mike was around and everything would be alright. "I have lost my husband, my best friend, the father of my children, my rock, the person who rubbed my back when it ached, made my morning cuppa, laughed with me, wiped away my tears, danced with me, loved me. "My heart is truly broken, and I miss him so much it physically hurts.

All I have left of him are my memories and that shouldn't be. "Our daughters have lost an amazing dad who would do anything for them however old they were. "I never got the chance to say goodbye to Mike on that fateful day.

"I waved him off to work and the next time I saw him was 11 days later in the mortuary." Speaking to Nicholls, she added: "The actions you took on that day when you got in your van have changed everyone in our families lives forever. "But more importantly, Mike was denied the right to live his life because of you."

Noelie Poupard, officer in the case, said: "This was a collision caused by Nicholls' failure to concentrate on the road ahead of him. "A motorist looking away from the road, even for a second, will cover quite a significant distance when they are travelling 70mph and the consequences can be horrendous, as this case painfully demonstrates. "Poor concentration at the wheel is one of the fatal five reasons behind collisions and it is entirely avoidable.

"Our thoughts and sympathies go out to Michael Stone's devastated family.

"It's impossible not to be moved by Penny's heartbreaking words.

"We sincerely hope drivers take onboard her comments and understand the importance of driving safely, because doing so will help to prevent other families suffering the same heartache."