Woman killed in quad bike crash wore helmet which gave little protection, inquest hears
A YOUNG British holidaymaker killed in Turkey was wearing a helmet that gave her little protection when the quad bike she was riding on plunged off a road, an inquest heard.
Amarna Carthy died from a head injury after she fell from the four-wheeled machine she and her aunt had hired while on a week-long holiday.
The "beautiful, kind hearted" 21-year-old, who was given an open face helmet, died from severe head injuries in the horror smash near the resort of Fethiye.
But Nottingham Coroner's Court heard the headgear she had been provided with did not "offered much protection".
Since Ms Carthy's death, her family have run a website and social media campaign to warn other holidaymakers about dangers of riding hire bikes abroad.
And they are trying to persuade Turkish lawmakers to improve helmet safety to prevent other families suffering the same heartbreak.
Detective Sergeant James Greely, of the East Midlands Serious Collision Investigation Unit, told the inquest it appeared the helmets "had not offered them much protection".
What Amarna needed was protection when she came off that bike
He added: "From my analysis of the evidence, the issue wasn't so much if there was any apparent problem with the quad bike, it was more to do with the quality of the helmet.
"What Amarna needed was protection when she came off that bike."
Entrepreneur Ms Carthy had been riding as passenger on the bike which her aunt Jakadi Clarke was driving on May 24.
They had hired the bike as a last treat before they flew home 48 hours later.
The court heard the pair were travelling behind a heavy goods vehicle, with "impatient" motorists waiting behind them.
Ms Clarke, 24, of Gedling, Nottinghamshire, moved to the near side of the road to get out of the way, but their path quickly narrowed to accommodate a drainage area.
Unable to get back onto the road, they were thrown from the quad bike.
Ms Carthy suffered a head injury and was pronounced dead at the scene, her auntie suffered serious pelvic injuries.
Her devastated mum Tashaka Baumber received a heartbreaking phone call the next day and immediately flew out to Turkey with her husband Mark Carny.
While Ms Carthy and Ms Clarke only had provisional licences, this had not stopped them hiring a quad bike.
Detective Sergeant Greely confirmed that tourists only required a provisional licence to ride.
He added: "At the end of the day, if (hire firms) can get away with being able to supply less quality helmets or machines that are not maintained as they could be, that's going to increase their profits."
A verdict of accidental death was recorded.
Nottinghamshire's coroner Mairin Casey said: "This is a tragic accident. There's nothing that I have read or been made aware of in the manner of driving that caused or contributed to this event.
"But the safety precautions, which would have been taken in this country, were not applied in the same way in Turkey.
"If anything good is to come of this, the message goes out to the public that they need to be very vigilant of the safety standards abroad when hiring any vehicle of this type, both in terms of the vehicle and safety equipment."
Ms Carthy had just set up a health business with her mum, and had returned to Turkey where she had lived when she was 18.
Mum-of-four Ms Baumber, 40, of Bakersfield, Nottinghamshire, is leading a campaign to toughen up the laws governing bike hire firms.
The singer has set up a petition calling for stricter safety laws in Turkey which has more than 2,6000 signatures and highlighting the dangers to British holidaymakers.