A WIDOW says her family “has been ripped apart” after her husband died following a head-on crash during a weekend break.

John and Debbie Evans were seriously injured when their car was hit by a Peugeot 308 which swerved into their path to avoid running into the back of another vehicle.

Mr Evans had to be cut free from their Hyundai IX20 by firefighters and he suffered several serious injuries, including spinal fractures.

The crash happened on January 14 2023 on the A4189 in Claverdon.

Following the horror crash Mrs Evans, was discharged from hospital, but her husband, a former senior systems analyst, was kept in hospital due to the severity of his injuries.

He underwent surgery on January 19 but died the next day aged 60.

Mrs Evans has now joined with her legal team at Irwin Mitchell in urging drivers to take care on the roads.

It comes after the driver of the car which crashed into the couple’s vehicle was sentenced at Coventry Crown Court earlier this month. 

Christopher Key, of Glovers Close, Solihull, formerly of Newent Close, Redditch, previously pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving.

Key received a six-month prison sentence suspended for two years. He was also given an 18-month driving ban with an extended retest, 250 hours’ unpaid community work and a three-month curfew.

Mr and Mrs Evans had been married for 39 years and had a son and daughter Joel and Chloe aged 31 and 28.

John EvansJohn Evans (Image: Irwin Mitchell)

The couple, from Swansea, were on a break in Warwickshire when the collision happened.

The couple were driving along Station Road towards Warwick town centre when a Peugeot 308 swerved into their path to avoid running into the back of another car waiting to turn right into Star Lane, the court was told.

Mrs Evans said after the hearing: “We were driving into Warwick for a look around. The next thing I remember was feeling a huge jolt and asking John what had happened.

“John started panicking and saying he was dying. There was a lot of smoke in the car because the air bags had gone off and I remember I thought I was also dying because the pain was that bad.

“I remember someone coming to the side of the car to help and the emergency services arrived quickly.

“By that stage everything was a blur. I was very upset and panicking.

“I knew John was in a bad way and I could hear in his voice he was frightened but nothing could prepare me for what was to come. Seeing him in hospital in those final few hours was awful.

“It’s still too difficult to understand how one moment we were enjoying a weekend away and then the next our family had been ripped apart.

“John was one of the good guys. He was an amazing husband and a wonderful dad. Nothing was ever too much trouble for him.

“John was my everything and now that he’s gone there’s a huge void in my life that cannot be filled.

“We should have had many more years together, but I feel I’ve been robbed of these because of the crash. All of us miss John and his kind and caring nature.

“I know nothing can ever make up for what’s happened. All I can hope for now is that by speaking out drivers realise the hurt and pain they can cause and why it’s so important everyone takes care on the roads.”