Tas coroner rules on boy's 4WD death

A coroner has described as a "tragic accident" the death of a three-year-old Tasmanian boy, fatally crushed by a four-wheel drive on an off-road excursion with his family.

The boy, who hasn't been named for legal reasons, was killed instantly by "severe crush injuries" in June 2014 on a rough track near Trial Harbour on the state's west coast.

"The circumstances surrounding the death highlight the dangers associated with having small children in the vicinity of machinery. That having been said, I am satisfied (the) death was a tragic accident," Simon Cooper said in his findings published on Monday.