A FARM worker who caused the deaths of two men was fined £500 yesterday after their car crashed into the back of his trailer as he crossed a busy road.

Paul Humpherson and Peter Gates died when their car hit the trailer towed by Andrew Breckon's tractor.

Breckon, taking a short cut across the busy A19 near Thimbleby, North Yorkshire, continued without stopping, Teesside Crown Court was told.

The 41-year-old was convicted on two counts of careless driving after the jury rejected the more serious alternative of death by dangerous driving.

Last night, Mr Humpherson's daughter, Ruth, said: "We are obviously shocked and surprised at the verdict.

"It was, though, never a case of us wanting revenge because we realise that Mr Breckon was a decent, hard-working man who just made a terrible mistake.

"The end of the court case will give us closure, and although this is not something that is easily dealt with, we have to try now to move on."

Sentencing the father-of-two, Judge Tony Briggs said: "I do take into account the considerable consequences of you driving carelessly and fine you £500, which you can pay at £10 per week."

His driving licence was also endorsed with five penalty points, but he was not banned from the road.

Father-of-two Mr Humph-erson, 59, of Burnopfield, County Durham, and father-of-three Mr Gates, 52, of Ponteland, Northumberland, died almost instantly on September 25, last year.

They and passengers Frank Newton and Brian Gilholme worked for a car leasing company.

It was getting dark when the crash happened, and because of the angle of the trailer, Mr Humpherson, who was driving, would have had difficulty seeing it or its warning lights.

The rear of the trailer was overhanging by at least 6ft into the fast lane of the northbound A19.

Breckon, of Hambleton Avenue, Romanby, Northallerton, had denied killing the two men by dangerous driving.