THE CRASH that killed PC Nick Dumphreys could have been avoided if Cumbria Police had stopped using cars with the fault-prone BMW engine that caused the tragedy, says the officer’s widow.

Kathryn Dumphreys, 41, spoke out after a coroner concluded the inquest into the fatal crash in January, 2020.

Describing her husband as a 'truly brilliant human,' Mrs Dumphreys said the circumstances surrounding the fatal M6 crash near Carlisle had left her angry – and determined to help prevent other officer suffering the same fate.

Much of the inquest into the tragedy was dominated by evidence about the N57 engine in the BMW patrol car PC Dumphreys was driving.

As he travelled at high speed during an emergency response, his car’s engine failed catastrophically, spilling oil on to the wheels and road surface. There was nothing the officer could do to prevent the crash.

Mrs Dumphreys highlighted how BMW and police forces had known for at least four years that such BMW engines suffered 'a litany of faults', with an engine failure rate of between five to seven per month.

Yet  BMW cars were still used by police officers who were not notified of these issues, despite their need to routinely drive patrol cars at speed in emergencies, said Mrs Dumphreys.

She called for all UK police forces to stop their officers from using these vehicles to ensure “no other family endures the pain and suffering that she has gone through.”

She said: “It is absolutely staggering that Nick was sent out that day driving this car. BMW and police forces across the country knew that these cars were not fit for purpose.

"But the brave police officers out there driving them had no idea that they were driving what sadly proved to be death-trap – accident or not.

“The people that needed to know did not know. Police officers were not told about these faults. Nick had no idea.

“It was the worst luck in the world that Nick was behind the wheel of a car that in my view should not have been on the road.

"And from what the inquest has heard it was only complete luck that this had not happened before. It was a catastrophic accident sadly waiting to happen.

“Five to seven times a month these cars were failing… more than 60 times a year… for four years. Why were police officers never told this? It was incredibly dangerous for officers. It was incredibly dangerous for the public.

“It's staggering. I am dumbfounded and so utterly upset that officers were being sent out driving these historically failed vehicles trying to catch criminals with what was dangerous work equipment. It is utterly outrageous."

Mrs Dumphreys, who is bringing up the couple’s two young children, added: “It shouldn’t have happened. It was easily preventable. Nick should still be here today. All I want to do is ensure that no one else is killed.”

The inquest heard that according to experts the car’s engine was "not fit and safe for high performance use by the Police" on the day PC Dumphreys’ accident happened.

PC Dumphreys suffered fatal injuries when his car – a BMW 330 - veered across the motorway and crashed near Carlisle on the afternoon of January 26, 2020. 

The inquest heard that the BMW patrol car was returned to the Constabulary's vehicle management unit four times in the month before the accident. Reasons for these visits included an oil change, a power failure at 70mph and warning lights appearing on the dashboard.

Following the fatal crash, a forensic examination of the BMW’s N57 engine revealed that a displaced crankshaft caused an obstruction of the oil-supply line.

The result was a loss of oil, which was spread across the engine floor and, with the crankshaft continuing to rotate, this ultimately caused combustible parts of the engine to ignite.

The inquest heard that from 2014 to 2017, five to seven crankshaft bearing failures had occurred in each month in UK police vehicles. Coroner Robert Cohen described this as a 'startlingly high failure rate'.

Mrs Dumphreys, a serving police officer, has been unable to return to her Police Constable role since the tragedy.

Speaking about her husband, she added: “Nick was just everything. He was just a brilliant human. He was a brilliant guy. He loved life. He loved his family. His family was his life. But he loved everything that he did.

“Being loved by Nick was without doubt the best thing that ever happened to me. Loving him was the easiest and most natural thing in the world.

"We understood each other completely and I knew we’d be together forever; it just went without saying. Together we could face anything and knowing that he was by my side was all I needed.

“Facing a future without Nick has been terrifying and unbearable at times. But he is always in my head, smiling and encouraging me to keep going. We are so fortunate to have our favourite people around us to help us along the way.

"These are the people who play a vital role in keeping his memory alive for our young children, who were so young when he died they may not have their own genuine memories.

“Nick was just a really genuinely honest, decent person and he didn’t deserve any of this.”

Paul Williams, chairman of Cumbria Police Federation, paid tribute to Mrs Dumphreys’ dignity and bravery during the inquest process as she accused both BMW and Cumbria Constabulary of failing to take responsibility for the faults that led to her husband’s untimely death.

He said: “Officers should not be sent out driving to jobs with equipment that is not fit for purpose. Families should expect their loved ones to come home at the end of their shifts.

"The Police Federation will continue to hold police forces to account over the police vehicles they provide our colleagues.

“And we will continue to support Kathryn. She is inspirational and should not have to endure what she has gone through.”

Mr Williams added: “This should never have happened. The coroner used some very strong words in his conclusion, highlighting very specific issues – really serious engine defects, with an engine failure rate of five to seven happening each month since 2014.

"That’s completely unacceptable.

“This was communicated to BMW and BMW communicated back to the Constabulary about the issue but it was never really communicated to the officers who had to drive these vehicles.

“Yet when officers were driving these cars at high speed, engines failures of this kind carry a risk to life.” Mr Williams said all vehicles using the fault-prone engine should have been withdrawn from use when the problems were first identified so that a thorough investigation could be completed.”

Cumbria Chief Constable Michelle Skeer said: “The death of a police officer in the line of duty is always a tragedy...

“Our thoughts since that day have been with Nick's family, particularly his wife Kat and their children. PC 1724 Dumphreys was a committed roads policing officer who loved his job and was both popular with and respected by, his colleagues.

“His loss left a hole which will never fully heal."