A Tasmanian woman who died while driving home from her local hotel after several hours of drinking was travelling at almost 40km/h over the speed limit, a coroner has found.
Karen Lee Elizabeth Quillerat, 54, from Greens Beach in the state’s north, veered off Greens Beach Road on June 19, 2022 and rolled her vehicle several times.
Coroner Robert Webster said Quillerat was found dead early the next morning by passers-by, sitting in the driver’s seat with her seatbelt fastened.
He noted that Quillerat chose to drive home down the wet country road while extremely drunk.
“She has returned a BAC in excess of four times the legal limit and was travelling at an excessive speed just prior to the crash,” he said.
“This is yet another reminder that drinking alcohol to excess and driving at an excessive speed has tragic consequences.”
Webster estimated Quillerat was driving at a minimum speed of 137km/h down the road with a 100km/h limit and ruled out the possibility she swerved to avoid an animal.
“Drivers who avoid animals tend to make sharp turns and then attempt to recover from the sharp turn,” he said.
“That evidence is not present in this case.”
