Police enquires remain ongoing into the fatal collision on the northbound A19, just past the A684 junction on the outskirts of Northallerton, which occurred at about 9.10pm on Tuesday 27 December 2011.
The collision involved a silver Skoda Octavia and a white Ford Fiesta van.
The Skoda was stationary in lane one of the dual carriageway prior to the collision after it had broken down with a suspected punctured tyre. A passenger in the car, a 24-year-old man from the Stockton on Tees area, received fatal injuries when the Fiesta was in collision with the rear side of the car while the man was standing by the boot.
The male driver of the Skoda and two female passengers were uninjured.
The driver of the Fiesta, a 28-year-old woman from Seaham, County Durham, has been arrested in connection with the collision and remains in police custody for questioning. She was uninjured.
Police collision investigators remained at the scene until 5am, at which time the stretch of road was reopened after the vehicles were recovered and debris cleared from the highway.
Witnesses to the collision or anyone with information that could assist the investigation are asked to contact North Yorkshire Police on 101, select option 2 and ask for Traffic Constable Mark Thompson.