Finding into death of Rachel Louise Incoll
Deceased
Rachael Louise Incoll
Demographics
female
Date of death
2008-03-25
Finding date
2011-11-18
Cause of death
Injuries sustained in a motor vehicle accident
AI-generated summary
Rachael Incoll died in a motor vehicle collision on the Calder Highway when a vehicle driven by learner driver Shaun Matfin (age 16) drifted across the centre line into the path of a 57-tonne fuel tanker. The tanker was unable to avoid collision and tipped, striking the Incoll vehicle fatally. The coroner found that Shaun Matfin was likely in a 'micro-sleep' at the point of collision after driving over 50% of a 286km journey without prior planning. His supervising driver (his father, Ian Matfin) failed to act when Shaun reported feeling tired, did not observe his son's erratic driving, and was inattentive (tuning the radio) despite objective warning signs of dangerous driving observed by independent witnesses. The coroner found the unstructured driving regime was more like an 'endurance course' than training. No fault attached to the tanker driver's actions.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Contributing factors
- Learner driver fatigue and likely micro-sleep at the point of collision
- Inadequate supervision by the responsible adult driver
- Unstructured and unplanned long-distance driving regime for an inexperienced driver
- Lack of legislative clarity regarding duties of supervising drivers
- Inexperienced driver on challenging road conditions (long straight stretches, high speeds, long distances between towns)
- Failure to intervene when learner driver reported fatigue
Coroner's recommendations
- VicRoads should consider strengthening its message on fatigue on long journeys, especially in relation to young and other inexperienced drivers
- Consideration should be given to some assessment procedure for qualifying prospective supervising drivers
- VicRoads should consider recommending a legislative amendment to the Minister, setting out clearly the roles and duties of a supervising driver, either in the Road Safety Act or the Regulations
- Learner drivers should consider country driving as an important part of their driving education
Full text
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Source and disclaimer
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