A SHOP manager may have crashed because he saw a pair of trainers and thought someone was lying in the road.

Michael Phillips died four days after crashing into a tree on the A449 Worcester to Kidderminster road.

At Tuesday's inquest in Stourport-on-Severn, Worcestershire coroner Victor Round said a pair of trainers were found in the road where the 41-year-old Holland and Barrett manager's car had swerved across the carriageway.

"At night, trainers do show up," he said.

"It does rather make me wonder whether he thought there was someone lying in the road.

"It would have been a very, very worrying thing to see at night."

Mr Round said Mr Phillips, of Villiers Street, Kidderminster, died on Tuesday, April 24, after suffering "massive brain trauma" following the accident.

He said a witness, Sarah Varndell, said she was driving along the road with her husband when Mr Phillips' Alfa Romeo overtook them.

"As it passed her it veered into lane one, which was their lane, then on to the verge and into the tree," said Mr Round.

A verdict of accidental death was recorded.