THE widow of a sports car driver who died after his vehicle hit an uneven patch of road and spun out of control says the pothole-ridden surface needs to be urgently repaired.

Howard Lloyd Vizor died in October last year when his silver Lotus left the road in Faringdon and ploughed through a hedge, an inquest heard yesterday.

The 52-year-old married father from a village near Faringdon, was an IAM advanced driver the inquest was told by his wife Catherine.

Assistant coroner for Oxfordshire, Rosamund Rhodes-Kemp, said: "It's amazing how many people were involved in this particular accident.

"The emergency services that attended did all they could in the circumstances.

"I do understand Mrs Vizor's concerns about the road. It's a national issue."

Business development manager Mr Vizor was driving along Longcot Road on the evening of October 10 when the accident happened.

His wife said they had only recently moved to the area, so he had only negotiated the stretch of road about five times.

She said in a statement: "Howard was a kind, caring husband, father and brother. His family are devastated by his sudden, traumatic death and he leaves a terrible void in their lives.

"Apart from this accident, there have been three accidents along this stretch of road in less than a year. The road surface needs to be repaired.

"The surface between Shellingford and Shrivenham is very undulating with potholes in places.

"And the 'uneven road' sign is too far back at half-a-mile away."

Witness Robert Phelps was driving along the road with friend Justin Thorne at the same time as Mr Vizor.

Mr Phelps said at the inquest: "The road was dry and the visibility was good. The Lotus came up behind me at a normal speed and followed me at a safe distance. We came to the second straight section of road and the Lotus overtook. I was travelling at 55 to 60mph.

"I had no concerns about the manner of the driving as he overtook me. I know the road well and I was aware of the very uneven section of road. But the Lotus continued to accelerate towards that section. I did not see him brake.

"Then I saw the Lotus hit the bumps in the road and the back end went very light. The car disappeared off through a hedge."

Mr Vizor's car smashed through metal railings and ended up in a nearby field.

Both Mr Phelps and Mr Thorne jumped out to help, and Mr Thorne called the emergency services.

Mr Vizor died due to brain trauma after suffering a serious head injury.

Collision investigator Terry Anderson said Mr Vizor was most likely travelling in excess of the 60mph speed limit and concluded the cause of the crash lay with him.

However, he said the uneven road played a significant factor in the collision and the combination of speed, steering and road repair threw him off course.

Mrs Vizor's solicitor Simon Graham-Harrison argued that speed was not a factor in the accident.

Ms Rhodes-Kemp recorded a death by road traffic collision.