Drink driver spared jail after offering £10,000 to victim

A 41 year old has been spared jail for a hit-and-run road crash leaving a father-to-be with a broken back after he immediately "expressed remorse" and offered to pay his victim £10,000.

 

Stephen Andrews, an aerospace engineer who drives 40,000  mile a year and mentors BAE recruits, had drunk three pints of lager and lemonade, plus whisky, before the incident on December 15th 2019.

 

He overtook two cars at speeds of up to 50mph before ploughing into Inam Ulhaq's private hire vehicle, a VW Passat. He then drove off in his VW Golf and hid out at a friend's house before contacting police 12 hours after the collision. He avoided a breath test by handing himself in four days later.

 

Andrews, who is from Standish near Wigan, and a father of two, later admitted drinking in the run up to the crash but claimed he had driven away "in complete panic". Inquiries revealed he had a previous conviction for drink driving. 

 

Mr Ulhaq, who is in his 40's, had to be cut free from his vehicle by firefighters. The injuries caused by the horrific head-on impact were so severe that the victim was unable to hold his newborn child. He suffered a broken right knee, a broken back, dislocated right hip, and fractured pelvis, and had to undergo several operations.

 

He said, "I can only walk around 10 to 15 steps before the pain is too much for me. Due to this man's reckless and dangerous driving I truly feel my life has been ruined. On June 4, my wife gave birth and it should have been a happy time, but it upsets me that I couldn't hold the baby properly and carry him and cuddle him and do general playful things with him as any father could do. My injuries prevent me from my normal daily life.''

 

Andrews faced up to five years in jail after he admitted causing serious injury by dangerous driving and failing to stop. But Judge Graeme Smith, at Bolton Crown Court, said he posed "no risk" to the public. Andrews was given 16 months' jail suspended for two years.

 

Saul Brody, for Andrews, said, "His conduct is entirely out of character and it has left him a broken man. He will never behave in this way again." He added that his client had written a letter of apology to the victim and offered to pay him £10,000 compensation.

 

The judge told Andrews, "You have expressed remorse from day one and did that to the police and sent a letter of apology to the victim. You do not pose a risk to the public and are at a low risk of reoffending and are highly unlikely to trouble these courts again." The judge ordered that the compensation payment be made within six months.

 

E&K Solicitors

Rusholme