The family - including three sons - of a dad who died after a horrific crash on the A350 have been awarded damages totalling £1.2m at the High Court in London.

Philip Wicks was 30 when he died in December 2010, months after sustaining devastating orthopaedic and brain injuries in a crash that July.

The dad was travelling in a van on the A350 when it collided with a recycling lorry between his home town of Chippenham and the M4. He lost his fight for life at Swindon’s Great Western Hospital on December 6.

Following the tragic crash, lawyers acting on behalf of his loved ones launched a damages claim against the waste company.

And today, after negotiations out of court, insurers agreed to settle the claim in a deal which will see the family receive about £1.2m.

The money will be spread among Mr Wick's dependants, including his beloved sons, who were aged five, three and two at the time of his death.

Approving the settlement, High Court judge Mr Justice Jeremy Baker said the crash was 'tragic'.

Mr Wicks was joint owner of WP Fencing Ltd, of Chippenham, which he had founded with a friend earlier.

The court heard negotiations had been made more difficult by the fact that the children were born to two different mothers, Natalie Baker and Emma Taylor.

'This was clearly not a straight-forward case,' said the judge.

'Obviously the tragic events were set against a background of slightly more complicated personal circumstances.'

But the judge said the deal agreed between the parties and insurers was 'appropriate'.

The obituary for Mr Wicks can be found here