THE driver of the £1.2m Ferrari involved in a crash that killed a 13-year-old schoolboy has apologised in court for not insisting he wear a seatbelt.

Alexander Worth, from Kings Worthy, Hampshire, died in the crash on a quiet farm road in North Warnborough, near Odiham, in August 2016.

No other vehicles are involved.

Businessman Matthew Cobden, 39, from Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, told Winchester Crown Court on February 27 how he was unloading the Ferrari F50 from a trailer at his warehouse when Alexander asked for a picture with the supercar. The teenager was at the site with his mother and her partner, who was delivering a car battery.

Cobden instead offered to take Alexander on a drive in the vehicle down the quiet access road leading to Newlyns and Lodge Farms, where he has a car storage and maintenance facility for luxury and vintage cars. However, just minutes later, Cobden lost control of the vehicle, driving off the road and hitting a fence panel.

The car flipped, turning 270 degrees, and both the occupants were thrown out. Alexander suffered fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. Mr Cobden suffered a fractured rib and a punctured lung.

He told jurors that things could have been different if he had made Alexander wear a seatbelt when he got into the car.

Anton Allera, from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said: “Alexander Worth’s death was the tragic result of driver error on the part of Matthew Cobden.

“Following a thorough police investigation the CPS presented evidence to demonstrate the vehicle was in perfect working order prior to the incident. This included evidence from a forensic vehicle examiner and a Ferrari expert who confirmed that there were no pre-collision defects.

“The prosecution case from the outset was that this fatal incident was caused by the driver’s error. After hearing all of the evidence, the jury was satisfied that Cobden’s driving fell below the standard required of a careful and competent driver and therefore returned a guilty verdict.

“Our thoughts are with Alexander’s family and friends at this time.”

Cobden was convicted by the court of causing death by careless driving and will be sentenced on Monday, March 26.