AN ELDERLY woman died after her daughter accidentally drove into the path of a car at a York junction, an inquest was told.

Doreen Myers was being driven home from a day out in Bridlington by her daughter Jill Chapman in August last year when the accident happened at a crossroads in Copmanthorpe, said York's senior acting coroner Jonathan Leach.

Mrs Chapman, from Leeds, failed to give way when she emerged from Hallcroft Lane into Manor Heath, and a Toyota Yaris being driven along Manor Heath by Karen Goodman crashed into the side of her Skoda Fabia.

"She failed to appreciate that at the junction with Manor Heath, she didn't have the right of way," said Mr Leach.

Eyewitness Stephen Athey said he heard an 'almighty bang, and the Skoda ended up in a nearby field.

Mrs Myers, 85, from Leeds, who was a front seat passenger and wearing a seatbelt, was injured and taken to hospital in Leeds but died about a fortnight later from respiratory failure due to chest injuries and chronic obstructive airways disease. The inquest heard she had been suffering from a number of illnesses for a considerable period.

Traffic constable David Foster, who investigated the accident, said there was no evidence of braking from either vehicle before the crash, both vehicles were free from any fault or defect which could have contributed to the collision and there was no evidence of excessive speeding.

He said a Give Way sign on Hallcroft Lane was initially obscured by trees to drivers approaching the junction but it could be seen when they got to within 30 metres of it.

The inquest was told that Mrs Chapman said after the accident that she hadn't seen the sign but didn't know why.

The Press reported last month that improvement works were to be carried out at the junction following several collisions in the past few years, including last year's fatal crash.

City of York Council said then that many of the collisions were ‘overshoot’ accidents, in which drivers on Hallcroft Lane might not realise they were approaching a crossroad junction and failed to give way to traffic on Manor Heath. The work included improvements to signage and the introduction of coloured surfacing.