Man disqualified from driving for moving girlfriend’s car just 20 metres
A DRIVER has been banned for a year for moving his girlfriend's Audi 20 metres while disqualified.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka handed driving ban
A man from Middlesbrough who was already banned from driving was handed another 12 months of disqualification for moving his girlfriend’s Audi 20 metres. Keiron Reynard was spotted behind the wheel of the car by police who swooped when he drove it the short distance.
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The 21-year-old was already serving an existing driving ban from 2019 for dangerous driving and driving without insurance.
At the time of the offences, Teesside Crown Court was told how the man drove through Hartlepool town centre at speeds up to 80mph, running red lights before crashing into another vehicle.
He pleaded guilty to driving while disqualified and again driving without insurance for the new offences.
However his lawyer argued he had complied with the terms of his original suspended sentence and urged the judge to pass a community order.
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In the end, Reynard was fined £100, banned for a further 12 months and received a 12-month community order.
He will also have to do 60 hours of unpaid work and pay £550 of court costs.
The case recorder, Patrick Palmer told him: "You were seen in the driver's seat, seen to pull away and drive a limited distance of 20m before you came to a halt."
The events took place in February last year, meaning Reynard has already been banned for a year since receiving a suspended sentence.
Penalties for driving while disqualified can be severe, including a ban, six points on a driving licence and 12 months imprisonment.
Anyone banned for more than 56 days will have to apply for a new licence.
A third disqualification within three years means an automatic two-year driving ban.
And a curfew could also be imposed, keeping the driver indoors between certain hours.
In order to convict someone for driving while disqualified, police must prove two things.
Firstly that the person in question was in fact driving the vehicle.
And secondly that the person was actively serving a suspension from driving at the time.
There are few valid defences however, although an appeal against a ban can be lodged for ‘exceptional hardship’.
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Currently the AA estimate that some 800,000 people in the UK are driving without a valid licence.
It’s also not possible to be insured to drive if someone does not hold a driving licence.
The number of drivers thought to be without current insurance is even higher at two million.
Some 300,000 motorists are caught without insurance every year.
