"Tyre blew!" - South Tyneside drink driver banned after his Volvo flipped onto its roof in Hebburn
Offender was found to be over the drink drive limit and without road insurance.
A South Tyneside drink driver’s world was turned upside down when his car flipped onto its roof after a back tyre blew, a court heard.
Liam Collins, 29, escaped with minor injuries from the accident in his Volvo in Hedworth Lane, Hebburn, on Friday, October 9.
But police who arrived at the scene found Collins, of Shelley Avenue, Boldon Colliery, to be over the drink drive limit and without road insurance.
Prosecutor Carlie McArdle said: “Officers were tasked with attending a road traffic collision where they found a single vehicle collision.
“A silver Volvo was heavily damaged. He was identified as the driver and was conveyed to hospital for treatment, then taken to the police station.”
At South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court, Collins pleaded guilty to charges of drink driving and driving without insurance.
The drainage technician, who has no previous convictions, gave a reading for alcohol in breath of 50mcg. The legal limit is 35mcg.
Georgia Snowdon , defending, said: “What he will say is that the road traffic collision, he accepts being under the influence but that wasn’t the result of that.
“His back tyre blew, and he lost control. His car started spinning and it landed on its roof. He was not charged with dangerous driving.
“He has shown me the video of it and you can see that the tyre has blown.
“He says that in terms of alcohol, he had a few but he didn’t think that he was intoxicated but he was clearly over the limit.
“His policy of insurance ended the day prior, I’ve seen this, and he tells me that he got his dates muddled up.
“He thought that it ended the day after, but it was the day prior. He read it as the 10th of the tenth – it wasn’t a deliberate act.
“He does need his driving licence but does accept that he will lose his licence.”
Magistrates banned Collins from driving for a year and fined him £450, with a £180 victim surcharge and £85 court costs.
They told him it was disappointing to see someone without previous convictions appearing before them.