A young Worcester Park man studying in France was killed when he was hit by a car while looking the wrong way while crossing the road - which would have been the correct way in Britain - an inquest heard.

West London Coroner’s Court ruled on Tuesday that 22-year-old William Marc Etheridge died when crossing a highway in Montpellier, in southern France where he was studying as a foreign student.

Mr Etheridge, who was born in Kingston, suffered ‘head, chest and lower-limb injury’ after he was hit by a Volkswagen Golf at 1.50am on September 28, 2013.

Coroner Jason Pegg said: "This was a very tragic accident.

"Crossing the road he looked in the wrong direction, no doubt because he was from England."

Taking evidence from the report from the French police force, he said Mr Etheridge was returning from a party with six friends - four women and two men.

He also said there was a ‘suggestion the driver may have been intoxicated by drugs’, but this was not confirmed.

Mr Etheridge died in the ambulance which was called to the accident, it was also revealed.

Another motorist, who was travelling behind the Golf, said he approached the scene, where Mr Etheridge’s acquaintances were gathered around a body lying in the road.

A friend of Mr Etheridge, named as Mr Anthone, ‘shouted out to Mr Etheridge’ as he was looking the wrong way, but he was hit by the car, the court heard.

The inquest was formally closed by Mr Pegg on Tuesday, November 24.