Woman, 69, injured after uninsured driver smashed van into a spin

Morag McLennan, 46, of Ribblesdale, Penshaw, sent the vehicle she struck spinning over a pavement and into a fence – and left a pedestrian injured, a court heard.

Vauxhall Vectra driver McLennan has now been disqualified from driving for six months under the totting up process.

South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court heard the smash happened at the junction of Windermere Crescent and the A183 Chester Road, Houghton, at 4.30pm on November 21.

Prosecutor Lorna Rimell said: “The defendant had been in her vehicle and she came up to the junction and she failed to give way.

“As she turned out of the junction, she hit the back of the white van, which has then spun and mounted the pavement and collided with a fence and caused some damage.”

Ms Rimell said a 69-year-old woman who was walking by the roadside avoided being hit, but fell over as a result of the accident.

She added: “She suffered a cut to the back of her head which required a staple, her lower back was sore and swollen, she now suffers from vertigo, and her left shoulder is sore and painful. The whole incident has left her feeling shaken and upset.

“The defendant was fully cooperative with the police and was remorseful, wanting to know how people were.

“She said that she thought that she was insured but got back to say she wasn’t insured, that she had missed two payments and the insurance company had stopped her policy.”

McLennan, who represented herself in court and pleaded guilty to driving without due care and attention and not having insurance, said: “I’m sorry. I wouldn’t have driven the car with no insurance.”

District Judge Paul Currer gave McLennan six penalty points, a £166 fine for driving without due care and attention, and six penalty points for driving without insurance, bringing her tally to 18 points, leading to her being banned.

The mum must also pay £85 court costs and a £32 victim surcharge.