An elderly driver had been left “confused” by a fall the day before he got into his car and flipped it over on a busy road, an inquest has heard.

David Younghusband, 92, died at the John Radcliffe Hospital after suffering a serious head injury in a crash on Marlow Road, Cadmore End, on June 29.

The retired accountant, who also lived on Marlow Road, had fallen over the day before and had reportedly been left confused, but the reason he crashed his car into a ditch remains a mystery.

An inquest into the widower’s death at Buckinghamshire Coroner’s Court on November 25 heard how another driver saw Mr Younghusband’s white Skoda Citigo crash onto the wrong side of the road while negotiating a left-hand bend, hit a verge and flip onto its roof.

William Pennells said he was driving towards the M40 at Stokenchurch at around 5.30pm when Mr Younghusband, who was driving in the opposite direction towards Lane End, crashed his car.

Mr Pennells said he ran over, opened the car door and saw an elderly man, who he tried to support because his seatbelt was digging into him.

Emergency services dashed to the scene, including a Thames Valley Air Ambulance crew, who intubated and ventilated him at the roadside before rushing him to the John Radcliffe in Oxford.

Dr Tanya Baron, who works in the emergency department at John Radcliffe said Mr Younghusband, who had “reduced” levels of consciousness when he arrived, was sent for a CT scan which revealed he had suffered two rib fractures and a bleed on the brain.

Her statement said: “Neurosurgeons said it was an extensive injury and was likely unsurvivable.”

He was instead given end-of-life care and passed away at 11.10pm on June 29.

Thames Valley Police collision investigator PC David Hannan said the road is a rural 40mph road, but the conditions were dry and there were no visibility issues on the day of the crash.

He said Mr Younghusband’s vehicle was well-maintained and had good tyres, there were no mechanical defects with the Skoda and he did not think excessive speed was an issue, with the elderly driver likely knowing the road well as he lived on it.

He told senior coroner for Bucks Crispin Butler that there was evidence Mr Younghusband had tried to steer through part of the left-hand bend so was not unresponsive before the crash, but added that he may have been distracted, or indeed was suffering confusion as a result of his fall the day before.

Mr Butler said there is no medical evidence available to prove if the fall had contributed to the cause of the crash.

He said: “Mr Younghusband died from an injury sustained when his car left the carriageway during the early evening. The incident occurred in the context of a recent fall, however the reason for the loss of control of the vehicle cannot be ascertained.”

He concluded that Mr Younghusband died as a result of a road traffic collision.