The barrier smashed through Mr Farr's windscreen

The hearing into the death of Kenneth Farr, 37, from Penarth, south Wales, at an Asda store in Cardiff Bay was read a statement from Steven Broughton.

Mr Broughton said he quit the Bolton-based firm when he was asked to falsify documents after Mr Farr died.

A police officer said the barrier was reported six times in previous months.

Mr Farr had taken his young daughter on a trip to buy a garden shed when the steel barrier smashed into his car windscreen and hit him on the head, the inquest in Cardiff has heard.

Witnesses who saw the accident said there were strong winds and that may have caused the barrier to move.

She said that neither person was interested by what she had to say Det Con Mark Northam on a customer reporting the barrier to staff

Det Con Mark Northam said he had collected statements from six different customers who has seen the barrier swinging back and forth in the wind between October 2001 and the day Mr Farr was killed.

Under cross-examination by Stuart Hutton, representing Asda manager Michael Mainwaring, Det Con Northam accepted that two of the six allegations could have been duplicated due to the vagueness of their timing.

Reflective jacket

Det Con Northam said Carol Bateman had reported the barrier to a security guard during a visit to the Asda store in October 2001.

As she was leaving, she noticed the barrier was still moving by itself so she told a staff member at the store's petrol station.

Det Con Northam said: "She said that neither person was interested by what she had to say."

Kenneth Farr "idolised" his three daughters, the inquest heard

He added that he had also spoken to Rosalyn Davies, who visited the store with her daughter Bethan Lloyd just hours before Mr Farr was killed.

He said: "They said they arrived at the store mid-morning and they drove into the store when the barrier swung across the road in front of them. Bethan got out and had to push the barrier back into the open position."

Det Con Northam said after the pair had parked, they saw a man with a reflective jacket, who they assumed to be a member of staff, going towards the barrier to secure it.

Skateboarders

The hearing on Monday also included the written statement from Mr Broughton, who worked for Ascot Industrial Doors, the Bolton-based company which in August 2000 won the contract to install the barrier.

Mr Broughton said his boss, John Eardley, rang him a week after Mr Farr's death to ask him to retrospectively sign a method statement, a risk assessment and a computer-aided drawing of the barrier's construction.

In his statement, Mr Broughton said he felt angry that Mr Eardley had asked him to lie and he handed in his notice immediately, refusing to sign the documents.

The inquest had heard earlier that the steel barrier was at the exit of the store and was swung around at night to stop skateboarders and joyriders using the car park.

Mr Farr was a technician with Panasonic at its plant in Pentwyn, Cardiff, and had just received a gold watch marking 20 years' service.

His widow, Helen Farr, 42, said he "lived for their three daughters" - Jessica, now seven, and her sisters Emma, 11, and Hannah five.

Before the hearing began Asda expressed its sympathy for Mr Farr's family. It said it no longer used the barriers and urged other retailers to follow suit.

The inquest continues.