Fears that three friends may have been racing their car when it fatally crashed has prompted a new investigation into what happened.

Jawad Qureshi, 28, of Headstone Drive, Harrow, died in the crash on the North Circular Road, near the junction with Natal Road, in Palmers Green, on December 23, 2013.

His two passengers Toheed Robani, 34, of Litchfield Gardens, Willesden, and Haider Qureshi, 28, of Westfield Close, Kingsbury, also lost their lives in the crash, which happened just after midnight.

The three were in a Subaru travelling westbound, which hit the central reservation before colliding with a lorry travelling eastbound and catching fire.

At an inquest at North London Coroners Court, in Barnet, the court heard the trio had attended an unofficial car meeting at the McDonalds car park on the A10, in Enfield, that evening.

The three men then travelled back towards Harrow in convoy with three other cars along the North Circular, including a Vauxhall Astra, and two Volkswagen Golfs.

Abdul Hussain, who was driving one of the Golf cars, told DC Ranit Sekhon that he was merely passenger.

But he admitted he lied, and told the court he said that because he was not insured and was “afraid” of telling the police.

He also said his car was 15-20 car spaces ahead of the crash when it happened.

Witness Ramsey Saba was a passenger in the second Golf and told the court he could not remember whether the cars were racing - even though the day after the crash, he admitted they were racing. Forensic evidence also suggests they were racing.

As a result, coroner Andrew Walker was left unconvinced by the facts surrounding the case.

Evidence from a report by detective Chris Thorne found the Subaru could have been travelling between 60-80mph in a 30mph zone, when hitting the reservation and then colliding with the lorry.

Coroner Walker admitted new evidence on the racing on the A406 and who was driving the cars meant the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) should reopen its investigation to determine whether someone was responsible for their deaths.

He scheduled an inquest for two months’ time to check if the CPS would take on the case.

Family member Seyjad Qureshi was happy with the outcome and demanded answers.