A vehicle safety expert has described parts of a trailer that struck a car and killed a popular Aberdeenshire teacher as corroded and covered in rust.
Yvonne Lumsden died as a result of a collision involving plumber Raymond Lamb as she travelled home from a family holiday.
Lamb, 31, is accused of driving the Mitsubishi L200 truck dangerously and at an excessive speed with a trailer that had a defective braking system.
He is also facing additional charges of driving without insurance and with faulty lamps and broken reflectors.
Lamb, of Barryfarm, Maud, denies all the charges against him.
Mrs Lumsden, 35, taught at Stuartfield School, near Old Deer, and was described at the time of her death as a “dedicated” and “cherished” teacher who was “loved by pupils”.
She was driving the family’s white Volkswagen Polo, with her husband and their children, aged six and four, when the crash occurred.
The court was told the truck Lamb was driving was travelling in the opposite direction to the family when the trailer swung out into their path as they approached.
Expert says trailer brakes were ‘not working’
During the second day of the trial at the High Court in Aberdeen, Russell Moir from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency told the jury that his examination of the trailer found a number of defects.
Mr Moir said the trailer hadn’t been maintained for “months going into years” prior to the accident and he found corrosion on the braking system and its wheels.
He also described the components of a handbrake designed to secure the trailer to Lamb’s truck as “partially seized, if not fully seized”.
Asked about the braking system by advocate depute Michelle Brannagan, Mr Moir said: “It looked corroded. It looked like it hasn’t been operated or had maintenance done on it for quite some time.
“Everything was rusty. The overrun brakes were ineffective.
“I took from that that the trailer brakes were not working.”
Brother thought accused was insured to drive truck
Raymond Lamb’s brother Mark – the owner of the truck and trailer – also gave evidence.
He said the trailer was in working order when he’d used it just weeks before the accident.
Asked by the advocate depute if the trailer ever needed major maintenance, the 35-year-old farmer said: “It never really needed anything. We couldn’t see anything that was serious.”
He also told the court that he believed his brother, who occasionally helped out on the family farm, was insured to drive the truck as he was insured to drive tractors on the farm.
Mark Lamb said: “It was a farm vehicle – we thought it was covered.”
Defence advocate David Moggach asked the farmer: “If you knew he wasn’t insured would you have allowed him to drive the jeep?”
“We would never do that,” Mr Lamb replied.
The trial, before Judge Alistair Watson, continues.
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