Girl, 17, who died on motorway after getting out of police car is named

A 17-year-old girl who died in a collision on the M5 after getting out of a police vehicle taking her to a custody suite has been named by Avon and Somerset Police as Tamzin Hall.

The teenager, from Wellington, Somerset, died in a collision with a vehicle that was travelling southbound between junction 24 (Bridgwater) and junction 25 (Taunton) shortly after 11pm on Monday (November 11).

She had gotten out of a police vehicle that had stopped on the northbound side of the motorway moments before she was struck, police confirmed.

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The motorway was closed off for around 12 hours overnight as investigations were carried out. It reopened just after 11am the following morning.

“A mandatory referral was made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, which is now carrying out its own investigation into what happened," the force said.

"Our thoughts and sympathies go out to Tamzin’s family for their devastating loss. A specially-trained family liaison officer remains in contact with them to keep them updated and to provide support. The family have asked for privacy at this difficult time."

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said Tamzin was being taken by two officers to a custody suite at Bridgwater in a police car from an address in Taunton. When the car stopped, investigators said she got out of the car before she was hit by a vehicle on the southbound carriageway. She died at the scene.

IOPC director David Ford said: “This was a truly tragic incident and my thoughts are with Tamzin’s family and friends, and everyone affected by the events of that evening

“We are contacting her family to express our sympathies, explain our role and set out how our investigation will progress. We will keep them fully updated as our investigation continues Our role is to independently investigate all the circumstances surrounding this incident

“As soon as we were notified by Avon and Somerset Police, we sent our investigators to the police post-incident procedure to begin gathering evidence.”