A mother and daughter died in a horror head-on crash at a notorious Ryedale accident blackspot when their car suffered a puncture, an inquest was told yesterday.

North Yorkshire East coroner Michael Oakley said the effect of the puncture had been aggravated by the road layout at Golden Hill near Malton - but added that the layout had recently been changed.

Janet Letch, 49, and her daughter, Hester Garner, 25, both of Falmouth Avenue, Otley Road, Bradford, died after their Ford Fiesta car rounded a right-hand bend at the hill on the A64 York to Scarborough road.

George Bowser, of Scalby Road, Scarborough, said he had been driving towards York taking his wife to hospital, when "in a split second" the Fiesta came round the corner and on to his side of the road, giving him no chance of avoid the head-on collision with his Lexus car.

Traffic constable Timothy Alderson said tests showed that the rear nearside tyre of the car had suffered a puncture and had only 10lbs of pressure instead of the correct pressure of 26lbs.

"The low pressure had forced the car to go out of control."

Recording verdicts of accidental death on the driver, Mrs Letch, a shop assistant, and Ms Garner, an assistant office manager, who was in the rear seat, Mr Oakley said the number of lanes at this point had been reduced from three to two, making the bend smoother for motorists.

Updated: 11:53 Wednesday, May 02, 2001