A MAN who died after crashing into a tree on a major road near York was two and a half times the drink drive limit, an inquest was told.

Samuel Gibson, described as a ‘loving and caring’ man, died on the A59 near Upper Poppleton in the early hours of Sunday, March 13 last year.

The inquest heard he was driving home to Harrogate after spending the night drinking heavily in city centre clubs and bars with friends.

His Peugeot 208 failed to negotiate a bend and skidded across the verge into the tree, said PC Richard Barker, of the police forensic collision investigation unit.

The car lifted up and the boot struck a branch, and the car then toppled over into a ditch, he said.

He said there were no defects in the road or the vehicle which would have contributed to an accident. "The tyres were in a good state," he added.

Asked for his advice on drink driving, he said alcohol impaired judgement and drink driving was illegal. "I would encourage anyone considering drink driving to think twice,” he said.

The inquest heard that Mr Gibson suffered brain and spinal injuries which were 'unsurvivable' and would have rendered him unconscious immediately and caused him to die within seconds.

Blood tests later showed he had 201 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres, which was two and a half times the drink drive limit of 80 milligrams.

The hearing was told Mr Gibson had been convicted of drink driving when he was 20 and banned from driving but had then got his licence back.

Coroner Jonathan Leach, concluding that he died through a road traffic collision, said his consumption of alcohol would have impaired his judgement and ability to drive properly.

He said Mr Gibson was a 'kind and caring' man with a strong work ethic, who lived in Harrogate but worked in York.

One of the friends who was out with him on the night before his death, Sophie Rothwell, said that Sam was known to drink drive “frequently” and that his friends struggled to control or stop him from doing so.

She described Sam as “one of the most reliable friends anyone could have” – and said his death left a “massive hole in my heart".

Another witness, Max Bradford, who was also out drinking with Sam on the night of the collision and had worked with him previously at the Cosy Club in York, said he was the “life and soul” of the workplace, but recalled that he would often stay out until the early hours of the morning drinking.

He said Sam was a 'good' person and he was 'devastated' by his death.

Mr Gibson's mother, Jennifer Perkins, said that the family’s life would 'never be the same again' following his death – and she wanted her 'loving and caring' son to be remembered in this way.