A LORRY driver died instantly when his vehicle crashed into a house at Beckford, an inquest heard.

Geoffrey Richardson was driving his HGV below the speed limit when it hit the kerb of a pedestrian refuge in the middle of the A46 Evesham to Cheltenham Road and ploughed into the house.

The vehicle destroyed the house, belonging to George Francis, who was upstairs at the time of the accident.

"Five weeks earlier, a very similar thing happened," Mr Francis told the Stourport inquest, "An articulated lorry hit the same side of the bollard and collided with the house next door and jack-knifed into our garden."

He said HGVs had to snake through the two pedestrian refuges placed on the road as a traffic calming measure. "It's terrifying to watch HGVs go through there," he explained.

"They look like a giant snake coming through. The bollard just shouldn't be where it is."

More than 1,000 signatures have been collected on a petition objecting to traffic calming measures along the stretch of road, with people feeling it creates a hazard.

The inquest heard that Mr Richardson was probably driving at around 40mph in the 50mph zone before the accident and had not been drinking or taken any substances.

His work colleagues at Buck Hickman described him as an easygoing man who enjoyed touring in his camper van and a skilled driver.

"He was a bubbly person with a good sense of humour and a conscientious worker," said Worcestershire coroner, Victor Round, reading a statement from one of Mr Richardson's colleagues, Jeffery Wier.

Mr Richardson's partner, Carol Cannaby, told the inquest he suffered from pins and needles in his hands but Mr Round said there was no evidence to suggest this played any part in the accident.

The pedestrian refuge kerb was larger than normal for a 50mph area and designed to deflect traffic away from pedestrians.

Traffic management officer PC Michael Digger said there was "no margin for error" on the stretch of road and Mr Round said it was "narrow and merciless". He recorded a verdict of accidental death and said he would write to the Highways Agency about his findings.