A “momentary loss of concentration led to a family paying an unbelievable price” when a motorcyclist was killed by a fellow enthusiast.
Van driver Gary Lowe pulled out into the path of father-of-two Paul Fairbairn, sending him over the handlebars and to the ground.
Appearing for sentencing at Inverness Sheriff Court today, Lowe, 56, admitted causing the motorcyclist’s death by careless driving and was fined £2,075. He was also banned from driving for 20 months.
Sheriff Sara Matheson expressed her sympathy to the family members of Mr Fairbairn, who were sitting in the public benches to hear the sentence.
Sheriff Matheson referred to a victim impact statement from Mr Fairbairn’s wife, describing it as “heartbreaking”.
She said that Mr Fairbairn, 44, was obviously “a much-loved individual”, adding: “Nothing I can do will bring him back.”
The sheriff told the first offender, of Barmuckity, Elgin: “You did not set out to kill him.”
She said that he was driving at an appropriate speed and was not under the influence of anything but “his momentary lapse of concentration had devastating consequences for a wife and children”.
Lowe’s lawyer, Stephen Carty said: “He has a level of contrition and regret and he has not tried to minimise the impact this has had on everyone else. Whatever the effect on him is inconsequential.
“He has not been able to face driving a vehicle since this incident.”
Victim taken to hospital
The tragedy happened on the A941 Elgin to Rothes road at Fogwatt on June 8 2021 and Mr Fairbairn was travelling in the opposite direction to Lowe.
He was on his Suzuki bike being followed by another car and Lowe and Mr Fairbairn were both within the 60mph speed limit, fiscal depute Niall Macdonald told an earlier hearing.
“The accused signalled his intention to turn right into a junction. A witness anticipated that the accused and she would wait for those vehicles to pass before turning.”
The court heard that Mr Fairbairn’s position on the road meant he should have been easily seen but Lowe turned into his path.
“An eyewitness saw Mr Fairbairn pass over the van before landing between the verge and the middle of the road,” Mr Macdonald told the court.
Paul Fairbairn was ‘a stoic, witty dependable rock of a man’
“Mr Fairbairn had attempted to stop his motorcycle using emergency braking.
“The front collided with the corner of the van, causing Paul Fairbairn to be projected over the handlebars, striking the nearside of the van, windscreen, and passing over the roof.”
Mr Macdonald added that Mr Fairbairn, a carpenter, was taken by ambulance to Dr Gray’s Hospital in Elgin, where he underwent life-saving procedures.
But he died a short time after the collision from brain injuries and multiple fractures.
“The accused approached a police officer at the scene and stated that he did not know what happened and that he had not seen the motorcycle and he did not know why.”
Following Mr Fairbairn’s tragic death, his brother Daniel paid tribute to the “stoic, witty dependable rock of a man”.
On Twitter, he posted: “He introduced me to my wife and put up with me eating his sweets when we were kids.
“He was fearless, loyal, thoughtful and kind.”
