A four-year-old Tasmanian boy who died after being hit by a garbage truck while riding his bike had only just picked up his uniform for the start of the school year.
The boy was struck in the street outside his home in Launceston shortly after midday on January 27 last year.
In a report published on Thursday, coroner Simon Cooper ruled the driver of the truck did not see and could not have seen the boy before he was struck.
"He had only just been to school to pick up his new uniform; he was due to start in a few days," Mr Cooper wrote.
"At the time of his death he was riding a small bicycle on the road and the footpath in and around the garbage truck.
"(He) was not wearing a bicycle helmet. However, a helmet would not have saved him."
Mr Cooper ruled alcohol, drugs, speed, inattention, road conditions and weather did not contribute to the crash.
"I convey my sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of (the boy). His death is an unspeakable tragedy," he wrote.
Members of the boy's family, including his mother, were home at the time of the accident.
"The driver of the truck was exceptionally shaken up," Tasmania Police Inspector Ruth Orr told reporters on the day of the incident.
"This is the most confronting (scene) that I've attended in 25 years."
Mr Cooper acknowledged the professionalism of first responders and described the police investigation as thorough.
