A VAN driver killed “one of the most generous and helpful people you could ever know” when he veered onto the wrong side of the road whilst reaching for a packet of chewing gum.

Edward Parkes, 34, caused the collision on Kit’s Hill, Maldon, last August when he crashed into a Ford Fiesta being driven in the opposite direction by Hilary Grieve.

Her husband Tim Grieve was in the passenger seat and the two had been going on a trip for afternoon tea, Chelmsford Crown Court heard on Thursday.

Emergency – Hilary Grieve was airlifted to hospital in London whilst her husband was taken to Basildon HospitalEmergency – Hilary Grieve was airlifted to hospital in London whilst her husband was taken to Basildon Hospital (Image: Public) In the immediate after math of the crash Parkes told a witness, who was an off-duty member of the fire service, “It was all my fault”.

Mrs Grieve was airlifted for urgent treatment in London but her injuries were so severe that she died the following day.

Mr Grieve escaped with minor injuries and was treated at Basildon Hospital.

Jerry Hayes, prosecuting, read a victim impact statement on behalf of Mrs Grieve’s friend, Tiphareth Strath.

It read: “She was funny, kind, devoted, loyal, super organised, and full of life.

“If medals were handed out for friends she would have won the gold every year.”

Mrs Grieve’s daughter, Aime, wrote in a statement: “She was the glue that held everyone and everything together and the person you would always want in a crisis.

“Not only did Edward Parkes’ actions take my mum’s life, he has ruined the rest of mine and my dad’s.

“Every life event going forward will have a really big void.”

Mrs Grieve’s husband of 31 years, Mr Grieve, wrote that his wife was “my soulmate, my rock, and very best friend”.

Parkes, of Aldreth Road, Ely, Cambridgeshire, admitted one charge of causing death by careless driving and another of causing serious injury by careless driving.

Henry Hughes, mitigating, said Parkes has become “a recluse, burdened with grief and devastation” from his actions and struggles to get through each day at work without breaking down in tears.

Location – Kit's Hill, Maldon, is where the fatal collision occurred last yearLocation – Kit's Hill, Maldon, is where the fatal collision occurred last year (Image: Geograph) The court heard Parkes had been disqualified from driving for 56 days in 2012 after he was caught speeding but had been driving within the speed limit at the time of the collision last year.

He was given a ten-month jail sentence suspended for 21 months, ordered to do 250 hours of unpaid work, and banned from driving for two years.

He was also ordered to pay £705 in prosecution costs.