A van driver who killed a woman on a smart motorway has been spared jail after it emerged the safety alert system had been malfunctioning for nearly a week before the crash.
Barry O’Sullivan, 45, was driving a grey Ford work van along the M4 on the morning of March 7, 2022, when he collided with a Nissan Micra that had stopped in the fast lane between junctions 11 and 12. The impact sent both vehicles forward and the Nissan burst into flames, killing passenger Pulvinder Dhillon, 68.
System Failure
An unresolved technical failure on the M4 smart motorway network meant that radar alerts for broken-down vehicles were not being properly communicated to the control room. This fault had been active for five days before the collision. National Highways acknowledged that the system “wasn’t working as it should be” on the day of the crash, describing the problem as a “computer error.”
Internal records show that the malfunction was flagged by the system but tickets were assigned to the wrong National Highways team with an incorrect priority level of “7-day resolution.” On the day of the collision, the smart motorway system was not functioning and “wasn’t showing messages about any obstructions in the road ahead.”
The Stopped Vehicle Detection (SVD) radar system, installed on that section of the M4, was technically available but a communication failure meant alerts were not presented to operators. A National Highways investigation report suggested that the broken-down Nissan was detected by radars on the day of the crash but “did not meet the waiting criteria to raise an alert.”
National Highways has said that “measures in place” were implemented after the collision to ensure such a failure would not happen again, with assurances that the fault was resolved and checks were introduced. However, broader data from the company shows that such outages are not isolated: between June 2022 and February 2024 there were 397 reported power outages on smart motorways across England, some lasting days. In 2022 alone, 2,331 faults were recorded on radar systems designed to spot stationary vehicles, with an average fault length of more than five days. Independent reports have found it is three times more dangerous to break down on a smart motorway without a hard shoulder, and seven coroners have called for enhanced safety measures over the past five years.
Court Proceedings
O’Sullivan was found guilty at an earlier trial of causing Mrs Dhillon’s death by careless driving. At Reading Crown Court on Friday, Judge Amjad Nawaz sentenced him to six months’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, and disqualified him from driving for 12 months.
The judge said the absence of warning lights should not detract from a driver’s duty to remain alert. “Every driver owes the duty of care to other users,” he said. “The fact that there was no warning lights does not detract from that duty in any way. Nothing the defendant said explained why he didn’t see the car ahead. There were plenty of cues, and no evidence of slowing down.”
CCTV footage showed that the Nissan had been stationary in the fast lane for six minutes before the collision, and that other motorists had taken steps to avoid it. O’Sullivan was driving at speeds between 74 and 80 mph in the five seconds leading up to the crash. His van recorded zero alcohol and no illegal drugs. The prosecution argued that his driving showed “a lack of attention” and “distraction,” though the cause of the distraction remains unknown.
Defence lawyers argued that the crash was “inevitable” due to the stationary car in the fast lane and the lack of warning signs. The judge acknowledged that O’Sullivan suffered severe injuries in the crash, which reduced his life expectancy, and noted that he now walks with sticks and is unable to work.
In a statement read out by his barrister, O’Sullivan expressed remorse: “My heart aches for the family of Pulvinder Dhillon. There is not a day I do not think about how sorry I am about this situation. This is something that will truly haunt me forever.” Speaking outside court after sentencing, he said: “Nobody’s won – everybody’s suffered needlessly.” He added that he believes National Highways have “just washed their hands of blatant negligence” and has submitted a complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, which is in process.
Victim’s Family Impact
In an impact statement read out to court by prosecutor Ian Hope, Mrs Dhillon’s youngest son, Manvir Dhillon, described his mother as his “best friend” and said the family was struggling to move on from her sudden loss. “Just the day before this horrific incident, she had been at a party, dancing away and living her life to the fullest, as she had always done,” the statement read. “One day she was dancing and the next she is no longer alive. How could we ever forget this and move on? It was so sudden and although it has nearly been four years, we are still unable to fully process this.”
Part of the statement was addressed directly to O’Sullivan: “We know you hadn’t set off that morning to take someone’s life but the fact of the matter is that you did. Where is your driving standards, your training? All of these questions remained unanswered because you refuse to admit blame. I am not saying you are the only one to blame but you did have a major part to play. I would have rather you came to me at the very least and admitted you made a mistake or weren’t paying attention. I can’t say I’d sympathise but I’d be able to relate as I know how easy it is to lose attention when driving on a long stretch of road.”
A National Highways spokesperson said: “Any death on our roads is one too many and our thoughts are with the family and friends of Pulwinder Dhillon following this tragic incident. While nothing can ever compensate for that loss, the person responsible has been convicted of driving carelessly.”
