A driver accused of causing the death of his friend in a car crash was travelling too fast to take a bend when the fatal accident happened.

Adam Clayton, 21, of Horseshoe Close, Pound Hill, Crawley, was at the wheel of a hired Vauxhall Astra when it collided with an oncoming Citroen in Balcombe, on June 4 last year.

A passenger in the Astra, 19-year-old Eric Raine, who was in the back, took the full force of the impact. He died almost instantly.

A jury at Lewes Crown Court heard the victim had been wearing a seat belt.

Accident investigator PC Graham Welsh said marks on the safety belt showed the dead teenager had put it on.

However, it was unable to prevent lateral movement inside the car as it spun 180 degrees.

PC Welsh said the crash had happened in a narrow stretch in Balcombe. He said although the speed limit was 60mph, the bends could not be safely negotiated at speeds above 40mph.

He said marks on the road just before the crash showed the Astra was unable to take the curve although he conceded that it was not travelling at more than 60mph.

PC Welsh said: "The primary cause of the crash was Mr Clayton's failure to assess the road ahead and he entered the bend at an inappropriately high speed."

The court heard earlier how Clayton, charged with causing death by dangerous driving, denied to police he had been showing off before the crash and did not believe anything he did in his driving had caused the crash.

The trial continues.