Inquest into the death of Grace Moulding
Deceased
Grace Charlotte Moulding
Demographics
27y, female
Date of death
2023-06-17
Finding date
2025-08-01
Cause of death
Multiple blunt force injuries in the context of a single vehicle rollover
AI-generated summary
Grace Moulding, a 27-year-old British woman, died in a single-vehicle rollover on the Sandover Highway while driving an unregistered Art Centre vehicle at an estimated 116 km/h on an unsealed road. Critical failures included: Grace held only a learner's licence and had no unsealed road driving experience, yet was employed as Art Centre Manager without formal recruitment processes; no mandatory 4WD training was required despite three previous rollover incidents; inadequate workplace policies for remote driving existed; the 110 km/h default speed limit on unsealed roads was excessive and contributed to unsafe driving. The coroner found the combination of Grace's inexperience and lack of safety systems was preventable through proper recruitment criteria, mandatory 4WD training before driving, lower speed limits, and robust occupational health and safety policies.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Contributing factors
- driver inexperience on unsealed roads
- driver held only learner's licence, not full licence
- no mandatory 4WD training completed
- excessive speed (116 km/h) for road conditions and driver experience
- default speed limit of 110 km/h on unsealed road was too high
- inadequate workplace driving policies and procedures
- informal recruitment without verification of essential driving criteria
- no documented risk assessment for remote driving
- vehicle was unregistered at time of crash
- lack of occupational health and safety management systems
Coroner's recommendations
- Artists of Ampilatwatja Corporation should amend driving policy to restrict use of work vehicles to employees who have completed a 4WD course
- Artists of Ampilatwatja Corporation should conduct risk assessment to consider if a maximum speed limit should be included in policies and procedures concerning use of work vehicles
- Artists of Ampilatwatja Corporation should amend Remote Travel and Work Checklist to include requirement to check roadreport.nt.gov.au prior to remote driving
- Artists of Ampilatwatja Corporation should adopt communication technology for work vehicles providing means of communication along Sandover Highway length
- Artists of Ampilatwatja Corporation should adopt technology to monitor driver behaviour and at minimum record driver speed to enforce policies and procedures
- Desart should review and update recruitment templates to ensure strict driving licence criteria are included whenever remote driving is part of position description
- Department of Logistics and Infrastructure should ensure comprehensive speed limit review for Sandover Highway is conducted within 12 months, prioritising safety of road users
Full text
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