Lorry driver jailed after cyclist hit waste he fly-tipped and suffered head injury
A truck driver has been sentenced to 16 months in prison after a cyclist suffered serious head injuries when he collided with flying rubbish.
The incident, which took place on a lane in Brentwood in September 2024, saw a man in his sixties thrown from his bike. Essex Police later confirmed he was taken to hospital with a life-threatening condition.
Investigators discovered the cyclist’s front tire had been flattened by a puncture and gash after he encountered waste from a garden shed illegally dumped three-quarters of the way down the road. Among the debris was a piece of asbestos with a protruding nail.
A police investigation using CCTV and dashcam footage quickly identified a dump truck and its driver involved. Telematics data from the vehicle revealed that the driver had stopped in the area for less than 10 minutes just a few hours before the collision and cleared the garden of vegetation and the shed. Officers were able to match the fly-tipped litter with material seen on camera in the back of the dump truck.
Essex Police said Craig Frewin was arrested and pleaded guilty to endangering road users at an earlier hearing at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court.
The 36-year-old, of Wares Road in Good Easter, Essex, was sentenced to 16 months in prison at Southend Crown Court on Thursday, the force said.
Detective Constable Alan Marks, who led the investigation, said: “Fly knocking is not only an eyesore, it can also be a deadly hazard.
“In this case, litter dumped on a rural lane caused a cyclist to get off his bike and suffer a devastating head injury, leaving him with no memory of what had happened and being treated in hospital for months.
“Particularly shocking are the dangers hidden within the waste: asbestos left on the road by a nail protrusion, which punctured a bicycle tire and contributed to this serious collision.
“This family’s life has changed forever and it didn’t need to happen.
“If you generate waste, you have a responsibility to dispose of it legally and safely; and if you pay someone to collect it, make sure they are a licensed waste carrier.
“Fly tips may contain sharp or dangerous substances and put the public at real risk.”
Following the collision the rubbish was removed by a specialist asbestos disposal company at a cost to the local council of £1,660.
It was learned that the cyclist was not wearing a bicycle helmet at the time of the collision.
