Driver jailed for watching TikTok videos when he hit and paralysed a firefighter cycling to work

Published 30 October 2026, 18:26

• Firefighter Liam Coffill was left paralysed when he was hit by a driver watching TikToks
• Samuel Powell, 29, of Luton, gets three years and four months after detectives proved he had no phone holder.
• Now 28, Mr Coffill has no feeling below his belly button.

A driver who was watching TikTok videos on a handheld phone when he hit and permanently paralysed a firefighter cycling to work has been jailed for three years and four months.

Samuel Powell, 29, of The Belfry, Luton, was sentenced at St Albans Crown Court on 30 October after being convicted of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

His victim, Liam Coffill, was 25 and on his way to a shift at Garston Fire Station in Hertfordshire when Powell struck him on the A41 Northwestern Avenue in Watford at around 8.40am on 18 August 2023.

Coffill, now 28, has no sensation below his belly button and will rely on a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

Detectives proved that Powell's phone had no holder in his vehicle, meaning he must have been holding it while watching TikTok at the moment of the collision.

Powell denied the charge and was found guilty after a two-day trial at St Albans Crown Court in September.

In addition to his prison term, he was banned from driving for two years upon release and must take an extended retest.

Coffill was travelling northbound along the A41 at its junction with the A405 when Powell's vehicle hit him.

He was rushed to hospital by paramedics, and an MRI scan the following day revealed his spinal cord was broken.

According to BBC News reporter Louise Parry's account of Coffill's experience, the injury robbed him of all sensation from his belly button downward and has left him permanently dependent on a wheelchair.

"I came round and was in a lot of pain, and realised I couldn't move my legs," Coffill told BBC News.

His firefighter first-aid training helped him stay composed in those first terrifying moments.

"I tried to get up and knew something wasn't right, and a bit of panic started to set in. But I calmed down and thought 'I can't go anywhere, and I might have internal injuries'. I remembered that from first aid training, it is best to stay calm and wait for help."

The first person to reach him was an off-duty police officer who had been travelling in the opposite direction.

Coffill told BBC News: "He was going in the opposite direction, and he turned around and just got down next to me and held my hand."

The officer stayed with him until paramedics and police arrived.

"Having somebody there while I was lying on the floor, made that situation easier for those minutes until paramedics and police turned up," Coffill said.

He cannot remember the officer's name or appearance and would love to find and thank him.

The investigation was led by Detective Constable James McAlister, who praised Coffill's resilience following sentencing.

"Firstly, I wish to commend the victim for the bravery and courage he has shown over the last three years. His enthusiasm to find the positives in life are nothing short of inspiring," McAlister said.

He was also direct about the impact of Powell's decision to contest the charges: "Powell's denial of the offences meant the victim was forced to go through the ordeal of a criminal trial, and I hope today's result goes some way in providing closure."

McAlister added that he hoped the sentence would serve "as a warning to others about the devastating consequences of such behaviour."

Coffill's recovery began quickly.

He told BBC News he was fortunate that a space opened up on a nearby rehabilitation ward within weeks of the crash.

"Within a couple of weeks they were helping me to get out of bed, into a wheelchair by myself. Early intervention made a difference — the earlier you can get the rehab, the better."

He later moved to the STEPS rehabilitation centre in Sheffield, where he learned to navigate the outside world in a wheelchair and eventually swim unaided.

"I experienced being in a wheelchair in the real world — it's not like hospital, which is a safety bubble," he said.

"I could then go to the pool by myself, get changed, use the showers and pool without any help."

After leaving STEPS, Coffill joined disability sports centre the Weir Archer Academy and a wheelchair triathlon club, committing to some form of exercise every day.

A London charity loaned him a racing wheelchair and hand bike.

"This kind of equipment is expensive with long waiting times, so to be able to borrow this meant I could get back into it even quicker," he told Parry.

He now aims to complete a duathlon.

Coffill also credited the Fire Brigades Union with providing access to legal support he had not anticipated.

"You assume union membership is for work issues. I didn't realise it would cover something like this. That advice proved pivotal," he said, according to the BBC News report.

His solicitors helped coordinate rehabilitation and compensation to fund lifelong support.

His message to others facing life-changing injuries is blunt and direct.

"The unluckiest thing in the world has happened to you, and the only thing you can control is how you go about that situation," he told BBC News.

"Your life doesn't have to stop just because this has happened. You have to find a new way of living your life… I found the best way was to keep going and trying to progress. It's not a sprint, it's a marathon, you try to keep going forward."

Hertfordshire Constabulary has launched a road safety initiative titled 'A Split Second', which draws attention to the "fatal five" factors behind serious collisions: speeding, not wearing a seatbelt, careless driving, drink and drug driving, and using a handheld device.

The campaign has been developed alongside the relatives of Callum Dix, a young father who died after two motorists engaged in a street race.