Insurance company director died after ‘harsh acceleration’ caused him to lose control of his Ferrari

Oliver Rose was driving to the gym along the A630 Westmoor Link in Doncaster when his car veered off the road, collided with several trees and flipped onto its roof, shortly after 8.45am on March 5 in 2023.

Witnesses told an inquest at Doncaster Coroner’s Court the 37-year-old was travelling at high speed and overtook several vehicles before he lost control, but he did not apply the brakes when the car left the carriageway.

A global telemetric tracker shows he was travelling at speeds of up to 105mph that morning while the red sports car was in race mode and he slowed to 55mph around 15 seconds before the collision.

Coroner Louise Slater said he attempted to overtake another vehicle and “harsh acceleration” caused him to lose control. His death was caused by multiple injuries sustained in the crash.

The coroner also described him as a “success story”, as he began working at One Call Insurance at the age of 17 and then rose through the ranks to become a director.

Ryan Rose said his “bright, quick witted and fun loving” brother had owned several high-performance sports cars and completed a series of track days to improve his driving.

"He was a beloved son, brother, uncle, friend and colleague who is sorely missed,” he added.

Forensic Collision Investigator Joanne Edwards told the court “it is likely” that when Mr Rose accelerated the rear wheels of the powerful car lost grip and spun, causing the car to “swing out”.

She said evidence suggests he then took his foot off the accelerator and the weight of the car was thrown forwards, causing him to lose control, but “there would not have been any time” to react.

Ms Edwards said: “In my opinion it’s the excessive and inappropriate speed that Ollie was travelling down the road at that caused Ollie to lose control of his vehicle, which then left the carriageway and collided with a substantial number of trees.”

An examination of the car found there were no defects which could have caused the collision but it was in “race mode”. According to Ferrari, this mode should not be used on public roads as it affects the stability controls.

The inquest was told there was no alcohol in Mr Rose’s system and he was not using his phone before the collision.

He also had Type 1 diabetes and proliferative diabetic retinopathy in his left eye, but the coroner was satisfied these conditions were “well controlled” and did not cause the fatal collision.