A tipper truck driver with previous motoring offences on his record who killed a cyclist in Fulham when he failed to spot him while attempting to turn left has avoided jail, instead being sentenced to 18 months in custody suspended for two years and 150 hours of unpaid work. The judge – sentencing 47-year-old Tristan Renshaw nearly four years after the incident in December 2022 – also handed down a 12-month driving ban.
The BBC and the Standard report that Renshaw, from Staines, was travelling in the same direction as 60-year-old Ukrainian national Zinovly Savyulak on North End Road in Fulham, west London, before he crashed into him when trying to turn left. The Old Bailey heard that Renshaw was unaware that he had hit Savyulak until a bystander made him aware and his victim’s screams could be heard.
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Renshaw claimed that lighting was poor on the day, and also said the victim’s dark clothing contributed to his failure to spot him. The prosecution disagreed, however, saying the cyclist should have been visible from Renshaw’s mirrors, and that he failed to make adequate checks.
The jury did not accept Renshaw’s explanation either, and he was convicted of causing death by careless driving.
Judge Philip Katz KC told Renshaw he had avoided prison “by the skin of your teeth”, noting that he had already spent a month on remand which should send a “clear message to you of where you nearly ended up today”. He also accepted that Renshaw appeared remorseful.
“The fact is you simply did not see Mr Savyulak and that is not a defence”, said the judge.
“I am sure you made no final check in your mirror. You did not see Mr Savyulak because you did not check properly a final time before you turned left.”
Renshaw was sentenced to 18 months in prison suspended for two years, 150 hours of unpaid work, and a 12-month driving ban, meaning he will be free to drive again in August 2027. The judge also commented that the time taken to bring the case to trial was not “acceptable” or “justified”, saying the impact on the victim’s widow had been “severe”, while praising her “grace, dignity and composure”
Saying her life had “completely changed” due to the psychological and financial impact of losing her husband, Mr Savyulak’s widow said in her victim impact statement: “The defendant and his family are also facing major problems and are under a lot of stress right now. I have no right to judge anyone, because that’s life and we never know what lies ahead. That’s what the judicial system is for, and it will decide everything.”
It emerged in court that Renshaw had previous convictions for driving-related crimes dating back to 1997, including driving while disqualified and taking a vehicle without consent. According to the Standard, Renshaw had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and autism, and had struggled with alcohol and drugs in the past.
9 thoughts on “Tipper truck driver with previous motoring convictions who killed cyclist in London avoids prison ‘by the skin of his teeth’ after trial that took more than three years to reach court”
Leaving aside the joke sentence, how on earth did someone with a history of mental problems, substance abuse and serious crime involving motor vehicles manage to obtain a licence and then employment driving the most dangerous vehicle on the road? Who did the vetting and when are they resigning?
The tipper truck industry is an absolute Wild West. Scandal ridden, partly because of the complete lack of regulatory oversight and the pay-by-the-load system which incentives dodgy driving.
I hope there is an investigation into the firm’s recruitment process and a corporate manslaughter charge.
We urgently need a HSE investigation into the whole industry
There is so much depressing deja vu here.
The defence factors taken from the usual tick box list : “poor lighting”, “dark clothes”, “didn’t see him” etc.
The usual rehabilitation path comments : “full of remorse”.
The common previous : “drugs, and alcohol”, “no licence” etc.
Even your comments about the tipper truck industry ring a bell. Look up the 1957 British film “Hell Drivers”, if you haven’t seen it. It must have have been inspired by events of the time.
I did wonder why Renshaw had been on remand. Was he a flight risk?
@Rendel Harris It’s worth pointing out that we don’t know when those other offences were committed, other than the earliest was in 1997. 1997 is almost 30 years ago now. I do think there is a reasonable argument that people can turn their lives around, and so a misspent youth could be excused if he has kept his nose clean (literally and figuratively) for potentially 20+ years since.
My deepest condolences to the family and friends of Zinovly Savyulak.
Its not fucking careless if you drive a vehicle and don’t check your mirrors. Its fucking dangerous and its fucking deadly. How on earth are we still dealing with this bollocks.
Everything about this is maddening. The fact he tried to weasel out of it and blame the cyclist. The fact hes avoided prison. The fact he was still driving after such a long history of dangerous driving. The fact he is still only banned for 12 months despite killing someone due to his inability to drive safely.
Another example of an unduly lenient sentence, which is particularly galling in light of the driver’s history?
Original reporting elsewhere was dangerous driving but now corrected to careless.
He still got the minimum ban despite previous convictions for dangerous driving and driving while disqualified. The judge did not take account of the guidelines around statutory aggravating factors and other aggravating factors.
Disgusting
Indeed, we had it confirmed by the CPS that it was death by careless driving.