Motorist caused head on collision after overtaking slower vehicle

48-year-old crashed into vehicle being driven by pregnant woman

A Douglas man who wrote off someone’s £28,000 car after causing a head on collision has been fined £650.

Andrew Otten, of Esplanade Lane, overtook the motorist in front of him, on Main Road in Baldrine on 15 June, because he thought they were driving too slowly.  

However the 48-year-old found himself in the path of an oncoming vehicle – being driven by a woman who was 33-weeks pregnant.

She attempted to do an emergency stop but their cars collided; her vehicle was a write off and Otten broke his hand in the incident.

At Douglas Courthouse he admitted driving without due care and attention.

Otten's advocate told the court his client was now a 'nervous and cautious driver' adding: "He genuinely regrets this incident."

Fining Otten, and ordering him to pay prosecution costs of £50, Deputy High Bailiff Rachael Braidwood told him: "You've ended up in a head-on collision which, by the sounds of it, could have been much, much worse."

Endorsing his driving licence with six penalty points she added: "Slow down Mr Otten."