The parents of an optician who died in a road accident say they still feel there are unanswered questions surrounding his death.

Nilesh Raja, 23, suffered fatal injuries when he lost control of his Toyota Corolla before colliding with a van on the A47 near Billesdon last year.

Yesterday, an inquest at Leicester Town Hall heard witnesses say how Mr Raja, from Hamilton, Leicester, had overtaken a number of cars before swerving back into his lane.

It is believed he then lost control of his car and spun side-on into the path of a white Vauxhall van travelling in the opposite direction.

The accident, at 8am on January 9, was described by an experienced police crash investigator as "the most severe side impact I have ever seen."

During the hearing, the road surface was described as being damp by the police, but dry by other witnesses.

After the inquest Mr Raja's father, Hiresh Raja, 54, of Hamilton, said he felt there was some ambiguity over how many cars were on the road at the time and what the weather conditions were.

He said: "Today was helpful, but I still think the sequence of events is unclear.

"We heard there was a mention of another car in front of Nilesh, but no-one has been able to trace it.

"We also heard some say the road was dry and then damp.

"As a family we are strong and all the people around us give us the strength to cope with this situation. To me, he was a natural leader – gifted and with a heart of gold."

Nilesh's mother, Prafulla, 51, said: "You come to this earth with a certain amount of time, it's God's will what happens and that's how I personally come to terms with Nilesh's death."

Crash scene investigator Pc Alan Moore told the inquest: "This is the most severe side impact in a collision I have ever seen.

"The van driver could not have done anything to prevent it."

The coroner, Martin Gotheridge, recorded a verdict of accidental death.

He said: "What we will tragically never know is precisely why it happened or what was in the mind of Nilesh at the time.''

Mr Raja, of Larkhurst Road, Hamilton, Leicester, had recently qualified as an optician and was on his way to work in Peterborough on the morning of the crash.

He went to Rushey Mead School and the Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College, in Leicester, before studying for his degree in London.

The family are planning to meet police crash scene investigators soon