The 39-year-old mother of two, beautician, dies in a terrible accident when the defective ottoman bed falls on her head

A coroner has issued a warning after a businesswoman died in a freak accident when a faulty ottoman bed collapsed on her head.

Mother-of-two Helen Davey, 39, suffocated when she became trapped between the mattress and bed frame.

Neighbors said she was found by her 19-year-old daughter Elizabeth, known as Betty, after the tragedy at her home in Seaham, County Durham, on June 7. She also had an 11-year-old son, George.

An inquest into Ms Davey’s death heard she died because one of the gas pistons that raised the mattress was defective.

Yesterday it emerged that Jeremy Chipperfield, chief coroner for Durham and Darlington, has written to the government warning there is a risk of further deaths if action is not taken.

An inquest into Ms Davey’s death heard she died because one of the gas pistons that raised the mattress was defective

He said it was his duty to raise concerns with the Ministry of Economy and Trade’s Product Standards Office about “the existence and use of gas piston bed mechanisms, the failure of which poses a threat to life.”

In his report after the hearing, Mr Chipperfield said: “The deceased was leaning over the shelf of an Ottoman-style ‘gas lift bed’ when the mattress platform unexpectedly sank downwards, trapping her neck on the upper surface of the side wall of the bed.” bed. Unable to free herself, she died of positional asphyxia.

Betty declined to comment when approached by the Mail, but following the tragedy, which was posted on Facebook, she and her brother were struggling to “process what had happened”.

“No words would ever describe how we feel,” she said. “I can’t even begin to understand that it’s real and that you (sic) won’t just walk through the door.”

“My and George’s best friend from day one, I will always wish that we had more time together and that you were still by our side, supporting us through everything as always.”

“I hope you know how much I love you and that I would do anything for another hug. ‘Until we meet again, my angel.’

Ms Davey ran her own beauty business, All Dolled Up, from her chic, newly built terraced house.

A local man said neighbors had been questioned by detectives following the tragedy.

He said Betty left her home on the night of the terrible accident and had not lived there since.

Ms Davey ran her own beauty business, All Dolled Up, from her chic, newly built terraced house

Neighbors said she was found by her 19-year-old daughter Elizabeth, known as Betty. Betty shared this tribute following the tragedy

The man said: “We didn’t know anything until the police and ambulance showed up.”

“We were interviewed by the criminal police and asked whether there was anything suspicious. They told us there had been an accident and Helen was trapped in a position where she couldn’t breathe. That’s all they told us.

“I heard a rumor that an Ottoman bed fell on her. It must not have worked properly because they jump up and down.

“The daughter was away for a few hours and when she came back she must have found her. ‘It’s a tragedy.’

Ms Davey’s death is the second fatal accident for her family after her brother Luke, 16, died from a brain injury in May 2011 when he crashed his moped into a telegraph pole in Hutton Henry, near Peterlee.