A student killed when her car plunged into a river had taken it to the garage to have the brakes checked just hours before.
Amy Simpson was driving back to the Loch Awe holiday cabin she was sharing with friends when the tragedy struck on Tuesday.
The 18-year-old had spent the day in Oban with four friends, and while in town had visited a garage to have the brakes checked.
But last night, her devastated mother Angela said she believed it was a “freak accident” – as her safety conscious daughter would not have got back into the car if she had not been happy.
The black Peugeot went off the road off the road at a small bridge over the River Avich, near Dalavich, and landed upside down as it plunged into 6ft of water.
Amy’s four friends managed to escape, but the Edinburgh University maths student did not and died at the scene.
Her mother said: “Amy had said to me on the phone about the brakes. They took the car to a garage and they said they were fine.
“She drove the 25 miles from Oban and was nearly at Dalavich. It’s a windy road that goes up and down. If there was anything wrong with the brakes at all there is no way Amy would have made it from there to there.
“It has been a freak accident. She was a conscientious driver.
“I don’t believe there was a problem with the brakes but there will be a full examination of the car.”
Amy, from Cowdenbeath, moved to Edinburgh last year where she was studying for a maths degree and also taking astronomy and physics.
She had just passed three exams and was due to sit her last exam of the term on May 5, before going on holiday to America for two weeks.
Describing her as an “outstanding person”, Ms Simpson said: “She had her whole life in front of her.
“My gorgeous girl Amy wasn’t just the perfect daughter, she was my best friend, my soulmate and my rock and she made me so proud.
“One day I will make her as proud of me as I was of her.”
Ms Simpson also thanked those living near the river who had raced to help the girls, including retired doctor Bill Macrae, who was first on the scene after the crash happened at 6.45pm on Tuesday.
She added: “The police who dealt with this have been remarkable, every one of them.
“I would like to thank Bill Macrae, the retired doctor who lives across the road from the accident scene, for his assistance.
“I know there was nothing he could do for Amy, but he helped the other girls.”
A police spokeswoman said: “Our inquiries into the cause of the crash are ongoing and we wouldn’t make any speculations.”
