Jackson James Aitchison was killed when his car crashed head on into a tree on October 10 in 2016.
According to just-released coronial findings, Jackson left work at Central Machine Hire in his Toyota Corolla about 5.30pm, and was believed to be driving the 3.3km home.
Pulling over, he saw Jackson, who appeared to be conscious, hanging upside down in the driver’s seat.
Jackson was cut from the car but as he was being transferred to an ambulance, he went into cardiac and respiratory arrest.
He died at the scene.
A postmortem found he suffered extensive head injuries.
Trace amounts of alcohol, less than 5mg per 100ml, were found in his blood, which was likely due to means other than deliberate ingestion.
Cellphone records showed a missed incoming call to his phone at 5.27pm, and four outgoing calls to the same number over the following four minutes.
The timing meant it was possible he was driving at the time, but it was impossible to know definitively.
Serious crash unit investigator Constable Jack McGilbert found at the time of the crash, Ballantyne Rd comprised a sealed part of road with an 80kmh speed limit, before transitioning to gravel road with a temporary speed limit of 50kmh.
Const McGilbert noted the transition point from gravel to seal had eroded and moved back about 3m from its original position.
That had left an uneven road surface where the two road surfaces met and might have been a contributing factor to the crash.
Const McGilbert found Jackson had driven off the left side of the road for about 5m before overcorrecting and going off the road on the opposite side. His speed was about 102kmh at the time of impact.
The investigator considered Jackson’s speed, inexperience and possible unfamiliarity with the area to be factors in the crash.
In her findings, coroner Brigitte Windley said there had been a history of crashes in Ballantyne Rd, and the Queenstown Lakes District Council was reportedly aware of concerns.
She had been advised a project to fully seal the road was scheduled for completion during last summer, and given that, she had no further recommendations.
"I do, however, strongly encourage the prioritisation of these works, to the extent there is scope for that, and request that the Office of the Chief Coroner be notified once these works have been completed," she said.
As of yesterday, the work was not completed.
The council was unable to provide further comment by deadline last night.
