The son of a 95-year-old grandmother who was killed by a reversing tipper lorry is campaigning to close a loophole that allowed the driver to walk free.

Greta Zoob had just set off for her daily walk from her home in Greenwich Millennium Village in May 2023 when she was struck by the vehicle moments after leaving her block of flats.

The driver, initially unaware of what had happened, then drove off and carried Ms Zoob under his wheels for 45 metres.

She was rushed to hospital, where she died a week later, having sustained injuries staff said even a much younger person would not have survived.

As she lay dying, Ms Zoob did not blame the driver and told family members she appreciated 'how upsetting' the situation must be for them. 

Now her son Jonathan, 67, is fighting to have a loophole in the law closed, after the driver who killed his mother walked free from court.

Active Ms Zoob, who as well as her daily walk enjoyed an over-50s dance class and played the piano, was struck in the village – a collection of some 2,800 flats in south-east London.

Entry to the village for vehicles is controlled by a concierge, who operates a barrier, and it was this crucial detail which led to the case against the driver – said to be known to Ms Zoob – to fall apart. 

The driver who killed Ms Zoob, who arrived in the UK from Chicago at the age of 25, was arrested and charged by police with causing death by careless driving under section 2B of the Road Traffic Act 1988.

The offence is described as 'a person who causes the death of another person by driving a mechanically propelled vehicle on a road or other public place without due care and attention'.

But despite the thousands of people who live in the Millennium Village, the driver's lawyers successfully argued that it did not fall under this offence as the area was not a 'public' place or road.

The charge was subsequently dismissed by a judge in 2024.

The Crown Prosecution Service did seek permission to take the case forward, but this was denied at the High Court.

Mr Justice Murray criticised the CPS for relying on a 'mistaken understanding' that it would be sufficient to prove the public accessed, rather than used, the estate to meet the definition of public place within the law.

Retired pensions manager Mr Zoob, of East Sussex, told The Times: 'Everybody is shocked that a little old lady can be knocked over and killed and somebody walks away to lead their life.

'Something should have happened to make the point in a public way that what he did was very wrong and, arguably, he should have suffered some punishment for that. But I don't think we as a family are hugely motivated by desire for revenge, punishment, or suffering.' 

He added: 'I'm sure many more people will be killed on private estates and council estates. Will a change in the law prevent that? Possibly not, but it would put out a message to drivers generally that it doesn't matter where you drive unsafely — you will face the consequences.' 

A Crown Prosecution Service spokesperson said: 'This was a tragic and lengthy case, and this was not the outcome we had hoped for.

'Our prosecutors did everything we could to bring this complex case to trial. We charged death by careless driving, however, an issue arose around whether the land where the collision took place was a public place as this had an impact on whether the law applies.

'Our lawyers argued that proof of access by members of the public, rather than usage itself, would be sufficient to prove that it occurred in a public place – the Judge in the High Court did not agree with that argument and the case was dismissed.

'We met Greta Zoob's family throughout the proceedings to explain and update them on the case and offered a further meeting to discuss the ruling. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies remain with them.'