Coroner Rules Misadventure in Cider Festival Deaths

A coroner has ruled misadventure in the deaths of a married couple who died of carbon monoxide poisoning while sleeping in their camper van at a cider festival in the New Forest.

Couple Died Overnight In October

Christopher Coll, 45, and Kayleigh Coll, 38, of Blandford Forum, Dorset, died overnight on October 11, 2025, while working as exhibitors at the cider craft festival in Burley. They were found by a fellow exhibitor, Alexander Huxley.

Inquests at Winchester Coroner's Court on July 22 heard the couple had been running a gas heater and camper gas cylinder not designed for indoor use inside their van overnight.

Inspection Found Leak And Loose Fitting

An inspection by gas supplier Flogas found the cylinder had 10% gas remaining and identified a leak, alongside a heater that was not securely fitted. Howard Jonas of Flogas said the type of parabolic heater involved should only be used outdoors or in well-ventilated spaces, never inside an enclosed camper van.

Hampshire area coroner Rosamund Rhodes-Kemp recorded a verdict of misadventure — not accident — reasoning that switching on the heating was a deliberate action with an unintended and fatal consequence.

Coroner Pledges To Contact Manufacturers

"Overnight on the 11th they suffered carbon monoxide poisoning due to running a camper gas cylinder with a heater that was not designed for use in an inside environment," Rhodes-Kemp said at the hearing.

She added she would contact the heater's manufacturer directly to check whether adequate warnings appear on the device itself, saying: "I think that may prevent a future death" — a direct call for stronger on-product labeling rather than relying solely on printed instructions consumers may not read.

Warning Echoes Wider Safety Concerns

Carbon monoxide poisoning from portable heaters and gas appliances used in enclosed spaces remains a recurring cause of preventable death at UK festivals, campsites, and caravan parks, particularly during cooler autumn and winter camping trips when visitors are more likely to seek supplemental heat overnight.

Safety campaigners have long urged festival and campsite operators to post visible warnings about carbon monoxide risk near vendor and camping areas, since the gas is colorless, odorless, and can incapacitate victims before they recognize symptoms such as headache, dizziness, or nausea.

Detectors Remain Underused In Campers

Battery-powered carbon monoxide detectors designed for camper vans and caravans are widely available and relatively inexpensive, but fire safety organizations report that a significant proportion of camper van owners do not carry one, often because static home-based smoke and carbon monoxide alarms create a false sense that portable heating equipment carries similar built-in protection.

The Colls' case reflects a pattern safety officials have flagged before: exhibitors and vendors working multi-day outdoor events are especially vulnerable, since they typically sleep on-site in their own vehicles for the full run of a festival, often after long working days that leave little energy to double-check ventilation before switching on a heater and going to sleep.

Fire and rescue services across the UK issue seasonal reminders each autumn urging camper van and caravan owners to fit a certified carbon monoxide alarm and to never use cooking or heating equipment designed for outdoor use inside an enclosed vehicle, even for short periods, given how quickly concentrations can build in a small, sealed space.

The Coll family has not issued a public statement following the inquest's verdict. Winchester Coroner's Court has not indicated whether any further proceedings, such as a formal Prevention of Future Deaths report addressed directly to heater manufacturers or retailers, will follow the coroner's stated intention to contact the manufacturer.

TheTrendsWire's Take

The coroner's instinct to go straight to the manufacturer rather than simply close the case is the right one — printed instructions get lost or ignored, but a warning stamped on the device itself is much harder to miss in the moment someone reaches for a heater on a cold night. Misadventure verdicts like this one carry real weight precisely because they establish that ordinary, well-intentioned decisions — turning on a heater to stay warm — can still end in tragedy when the equipment itself doesn't make the danger obvious enough.

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