A grieving West Sussex woman today paid tribute to her elderly parents, who were killed in a car crash on New Year's Eve.

Caroline Thomsett, 36, spoke a week after the tragedy on the A24 at Findon and questioned the lack of crash barriers on the road.

Alan Thomsett, 77, and his wife June, 70, of The Willows, Horsham Road, Findon, were killed in a head-on collision.

They were within minutes of their home when their Mitsubishi Colt, travelling south along the dual carriageway, crossed the central reservation and smashed into a tree before careering into a Jaguar XJR travelling north.

The family dog, Tango, was also killed in the collision.

The driver of the Jaguar suffered slight injuries but did not need hospital treatment.

Caroline, from Oxfordshire, said her parents had phoned to say they were returning home after taking back some Christmas presents about 30 minutes before the crash.

She said: "They meant everything to me. My mum and dad were my rocks.

"They'd supported me through some difficult times and were always right behind me. My parents and Tango, my dog, were my life."

Alan, who was once a musician on cruise liners, worked as a domestic appliance engineer and June used to be a receptionist for a firm of solicitors in Worthing.

The couple had been married since 1956 after meeting at a dance.

Alan had continued to play music and had performed at Durrington Community Centre a couple of weeks before the crash.

The incident happened just south of the Washington roundabout and, despite a number of safety measures being introduced, the A24 remains notorious for road accidents.

Caroline, who works for the BBC, intended to look into why the stretch of road where her parents died did not have crash barriers.

She said: "There have been something like ten fatalities in the last three or four years between Worthing and Horsham.

"I'm not saying crash barriers would have saved my parents' lives but they might have done."

A county council spokesman said barriers would not be put on the road for another two or three years.