'Devoted' family man was knocked from mobility scooter in Knottingley, inquest hears

A retired miner who died after he was knocked off his mobility scooter by a car has been described as a “very special man.”
Mr Hogg was described as a "devoted" family man.Mr Hogg was described as a "devoted" family man.
Mr Hogg was described as a "devoted" family man.

Harry Hogg, 84, was a trustee of Kellingley Miners’ Social Club, which he attended on a daily basis, and was also a frequent attendee of the Formula Fitness gym, close to the Great North Road, which he had helped to found.

After suffering a stroke in 2016, Mr Hogg was advised to give up driving, and instead purchased a mobility scooter, Wakefield Coroner’s Court heard.

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In a statement read to the court, his wife, Mary, said: “Harry Hogg lived a full and happy life. He was a hard working man who was devoted to his family and would do anything for them.

“Harry would devote a lot of his time to helping others, especially when it was to do with his beloved miners' welfare club or his miners' gym.

“Harry will be sorely missed by all that knew him and it is something I can say with pride when I say that Harry Hogg was my husband.”

Karen Dobson, Mr Hogg’s daughter, said: “He always said if he were to die tomorrow he would die a happy man, because he’s had a bloody good life.

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“It’s down to him we have got lots of memories. We’re still making our memories of him, it’s just the fun. He’s going to be up there giving them hell.”

Mr Hogg was knocked off his vehicle on the sliproad between the A612 and the A645 Pontefract Road on Friday, October 12, 2018, an inquest heard.

Mr Hogg, of Downland Crescent, Knottingley, had been on his daily journey to the gym when the incident took place shortly after 6.30am.

He was taken to Leeds General Infirmary, where he died later that day.

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The inquest heard that the collision occurred when Mr Hogg attempted to cross the road to his gym, and was hit by an oncoming Land Rover Discovery.

The driver of the Land Rover told the inquest he had reacted as quickly as he could to Mr Hogg, and did not believe there was any alternative action he could have taken.

Robert Ayre, a forensic collision investigator for West Yorkshire Police, estimated that the Land Rover had been travelling at a maximum speed of 30mph and said that the scooter had been pushed approximately 4.7m before coming to a stop.

As part of his investigation, Mr Ayre said: “(In CCTV footage) The brake lights appear to show that the driver had reacted prior to impact.

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“The marks at the site indicate that it was already in the process of emergency braking when the impact between the two vehicles took place.”

Vicky Meadows, Mr Hogg’s granddaughter, told the driver: “I just want to say as a family we don’t want you to live with this for the rest of your life.

“My grandfather had a fantastic life and he would not want you to carry this with you forever.”

Recording a conclusion of a road traffic incident, Oliver Longstaff, Assistant Coroner, said: “To the extent that the evidence shows I find that Mr Hogg drove into the path of a Land Rover in error.

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“It is likely as I find it that he inadvertently didn’t look carefully enough to his left, or that he made some mistake as to how fast he could get across the carriageway.

“When all is said and done this is an accident. Nobody sets out to have it, nobody wanted it to happen and nobody has done anything deliberate to cause it to happen.”