Walsall driver caused crash that killed his workmate

Sharaf Ebrahimi had started to pull out onto a main road and his VW Bora went around three feet over the white line where it was struck by a passing Vectra driven by father of three Colin Stevenson.

The impact sent the Vectra veering into a head-on crash with an oncoming lorry travelling on the opposite side of the street.

Mr Stevenson, aged 27, was not wearing a seat belt. He suffered brain injuries from which he died seven days later after it had been decided to switch off the life support machine, a court yesterday heard.

Both men worked at the Staffordshire base of parcel company APC in Norton Canes.

Afghan-born Ebrahimi, aged 37, was not insured at the time because the policy had been cancelled three months earlier although it was possible he did not know this at the time because the correspondence explaining what had happened had been wrongly addressed, Wolverhampton Crown Court was told.

Tragedy struck after he had driven down Cresswell Crescent to its junction with Broad Lane in Bloxwich at around 9.30pm on October 2, 2012.

Mr Bernard Porter, defending, said: "At the junction he looked to right and left and pulled out without looking right again, as he should. If he had done this the accident might well have been avoided. He did not pay enough attention.

"He does not attribute any blame to the victim but it is right to say that had Mr Stevenson been wearing a seat belt, the outcome may have been different.

"Both men worked for the same employer, as did the partner of the deceased. The defendant went back to his job but could not cope with it emotionally and left."

Father-of-three Ebrahimi from Darlaston Road, Pleck, Walsall, who had a previous conviction for driving without due care and attention, admitted causing the death of Mr Stevenson by careless driving.

He was given a six-month jail sentence suspended under supervision for two years, with a four month night time curfew and 200 hours unpaid work. He also got a seven-year driving ban.

Judge Michael Dudley told him: "The most likely explanation for this tragedy is a moment of inattention."