A HEAD-ON collision that killed a teenage driver was caused when he fell asleep at the wheel after a weekend celebrating his 18th birthday, an inquest has heard.

Jack Hughes, of Linton Court, in Winsford, was driving a blue Volkswagon Polo on the A533 Davenham bypass when it veered on to the wrong side of the road and into the path of an oncoming lorry.

The crash happened near the junction of the A533 with Jack Lane, in Moulton, on December 15, 2014, just three days after Jack's birthday.

An inquest into his death was held at Warrington Coroner's Court on Wednesday.

Alan Moore, assistant coroner for Cheshire, recorded the verdict that Jack's death at the Royal Stoke University Hospital on December 20 was as a result of the crash.

The inquest heard evidence from Kumari Such, one of Jack's best friends, who said his birthday party started on Friday, December 12, and continued all weekend.

He and other friends returned from Manchester at 6am on the Saturday and went to her house, where the party carried on and included the use of a recreational drug called mephedrone, also known as M-CAT.

She said Jack did not sleep during the weekend and on Monday morning drank half a bottle of wine and took more M-CAT.

He took the drug at around 7am but needed to leave in the afternoon at 2.15pm to pick his sister up from school.

"I asked if he could sort someone else to pick her up because he was really really tired and you could tell he wasn't ready to drive," she said.

"But because it was his sister there was no stopping him."

The inquest heard evidence from George Price, who was driving a Scania articulated lorry on the A533 from the Winsford direction at 40mph when he saw Jack's blue Volkswagon Polo come towards him.

"A few hundred yards to me he seemed to turn and came straight towards me," he said.

"I braked and threw the vehicle to the left, but I didn't want to do it too hard in case I jack-knifed.

"I went completely off the road and the car still came across."

The car was fully on the wrong side of the road at the moment of impact.

Drivers behind Jack's car, including Bernard Swift and Nicholas Robinson, who both turned on to the A533 from Jack Lane, said Jack did not appear to accelerate or brake.

"It was as if he had fallen asleep, something like that," Mr Swift said.

The cars were travelling at a speed between 35mph and 40mph.

Expert witness PC Robert Wilson, from Cheshire Police's road collision investigation unit, said the crash took just three seconds to unfold and said his investigation confirmed witness reports.

Toxicology reports found no alcohol in Jack's blood but did find mephedrone.

In his summary Mr Moore said: "We know from the toxicology report that there was mephedrone, or M-CAT, in Jack's system and we know from the toxicology report that fatigue is one of the come-down effects of mephedrone consumption.

"We will never be entirely sure what happened to cause Jack to completely change lane as it were but he didn't increase his speed or decrease his speed, according to witnesses.

"We can't be sure what's happened but on all the evidence I have heard I think it's more likely than not that he's fallen asleep at the wheel as a result of tiredness and fatigue as a result of the weekend of celebration."