Ormskirk teenager gets 18-month driving ban after crashing mum’s car into pub following night out drinking

Feb 2 2012 by Rob Pattinson, Ormskirk Advertiser

A TEENAGER who smashed his mum’s car into a pub after a night out drinking has been banned from driving for 18 months.

Stuart Nicol, of Southport Road, admitted crashing the Land Rover Freelander into the wall of the Plough, Church Street, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.

On Tuesday, Nicol, who had returned home drunk on foot before taking the car, told Ormskirk magistrates he couldn’t tell them why he had done it, and said: “It’s not like me at all.”

Following his conviction, Linda Roughley, landlady of the Plough, said he was lucky no-one was killed in the crash, which happened shortly after she had locked the doors at 1.15am on Saturday January 21. She told the Advertiser: “When the car hit it shunted the sink, there was broken glass flying everywhere. This is our livelihood and now we’ll have to shut for repairs. “Minutes before the crash people had been out the front smoking, imagine what could have happened.”

Pub chain owner Tim Reynolds said they were waiting for structural surveyors to evaluate the extent of the damage to the Grade II Listed building. But he estimated it would run into tens of thousands of pounds – including replacing original sandstone and repairs on drains outside after a concrete lintel was knocked into the cellar by the impact.

The court heard that the 18-year-old’s mum, Pamela, had called police to report her car stolen at around 1.30am, at around the same time police received reports that a car had smashed into the outside wall of the Plough. Minutes later, a “distressed” Nicol, having left the scene, approached door staff at the Alpine bar, and told them he had crashed the family car. Police conducted a roadside breath test and the teenager was found to have a level of 78 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath.

His mum gave a statement to police that the car had been taken without her consent.

Defending, Kerry Doyle said that Nicol, supported in court by his parents, had no previous convictions and held a clean provisional driving licence. She said that the teenager – who works on market stalls and as a catering assistant – couldn’t have shown any more remorse. She said: “This is the most stupid thing he has done in his 18 years. To say it is out of character puts it mildly.” Sentencing, chair of the bench Dr Sujit Sur said he must be given some credit for his guilty pleas.

Nicol was banned from driving for 18 months for driving after consuming excessive alcohol, and 12 months for aggravated vehicle taking, to run concurrently. He was fined £190 and received an 18-month conditional discharge for the second charge. Dr Sur told him: “Your mum lost the most through losing the car, which will cost her a lot of money. If you have a drinking problem, address it.”