A roadsweeper driver who killed a father-of-two has been jailed, while the victim's employer was handed a £750,000 fine.

Daniel Gooch, from Wisbech, died on June 1, 2018, when he was hit by a DAF roadsweeper driven by Cosmin Stanciu.

Guildford Crown Court heard that at around 12.50am the driver, 36, started turning the vehicle in the road at the Runneymede roundabout in Egham, Surrey.

Prosecuting, Allan Compton said: "He quickly looked into his mirrors and saw nothing. He then began the manoeuvre and saw workmen waving their arms and that was when he discovered he had hit Daniel Gooch."

The court heard father-of-two Mr Gooch, 40, had been crouching near the front off-side of the 15-tonne vehicle, marking new lines on the road for his Suffolk-based employer Toppesfield Ltd.

The hearing heard Toppesfield, which also faced charges, had failed to give Stanciu a proper induction to the site.

Mr Compton said: "Stanciu's quality of driving caused Mr Gooch's death but I submit that the failings of Toppesfield significantly contributed to Mr Gooch's death."

The court was told that Stanciu, who was employed by a subcontractor name Go Plant, was not informed about the company's policy on exclusion zones around vehicles.

On Tuesday, September 28, Judge Robert Fraser heard victim impact statements from Mr Gooch's family.

His sister, Laura Dewhirst, who lives in west Norfolk, said: "Our family continues to be overwhelmed with grief and we have to accept that this will never change. The simple truth is that nobody should go to work and not return to their loved ones.

"The hardest thing is that Daniel will not see his children grow up because of the events of that evening. All the time we hope that we are doing him justice and holding their hands, just as he would have."

She said they did not have time to say goodbye, and added that he was snatched from them by an event "which should have and could have been avoided".

Mr Gooch's partner, Annalise Dilley, said: "I will never forget being woken up by a banging on the window and the feeling in the pit of my stomach when I saw two police officers at the door."

Stanciu, of Landrace Road, Luton, Bedfordshire, had admitted causing Mr Gooch's death by careless driving. Toppesfield was convicted by a jury of two counts of failing to fulfil the duty of an employer under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 following a three-week trial.

In mitigation for Stanciu, Timothy Pole said his client had moved to the UK from Romania in 2015 and had an exemplary record on the roads before the crash.

The court also heard Stanciu had returned to his home country during the pandemic and had voluntarily returned for his trial.

Mr Pole told the court: "The position that Mr Gooch was placed in was a position of danger and there were no measures put in place to protect him."

James Leonard, representing Toppesfield, claimed Stanciu had made the roadsweeper move sideways violently and at speed and it was this that caused the accident.

He added that the company, which he described as a family, had been deeply scarred by the tragedy.

Sentencing the pair, Judge Fraser said: "Mr Gooch was an experienced roadworker and he had worked on many such large projects before. Tragically this time, he did not return home."

Addressing the family, he said: "I know that this has been a very difficult process and any sentence that is passed today does not reflect a measure of the loss of life."

The judge sentenced Stanciu to six months in prison and disqualified him from driving for three years from the end of his prison sentence.

Toppesfield, which is based in Ipswich, was handed a fine of £750,000. The firm is expected to be ordered to pay legal costs in excess of £30,000 at a later hearing.

Investigating officer Stuart Bonner, said: “This tragic incident shows how dangerous and devastating the effects of careless driving can be. The road resurfacing industry needs to learn from Daniel’s death and take action to avoid this type of unnecessary incident happening again in the future."

He said road users have a responsibility to those around them and "Stanciu and Toppesfield failed on this occasion".

A spokesperson for Toppesfield said the health,safety and wellbeing of employees and contracts was its "top priority".

"We deeply regret the untimely death of Daniel Gooch," they said. "Daniel was a well-liked and respected employee who is deeply missed and our thoughts and deepest sympathies remain with Daniel’s family, friends and colleagues at this difficult time."