Northamptonshire Land Rover driver whose 'reckless' pass was caught on helmet camera is fined £1,000

A Land Rover driver who failed to give cyclists enough room on a country road has been fined more than £1,000 after one of them fell into a ditch.

Paul Nigel Miley, 52, was caught by one of the cyclists' helmet cameras as he passed the group on a road just outside the village in June last year.

The cyclists sent the footage to Northamptonshire Police's online video department Operation Snap and Miley, of Main Street in Ashby St Ledgers, was fined after admitting driving without due care and attention.

The group had been riding along a single-track road when the Land Rover Defender drove towards them without slowing and forced its way past, causing one of the cyclists to fall off her bike and into the ditch.

PC Mo Allsopp-Clarke of Northamptonshire Police’s Safer Roads Team said: “Miley initially pleaded not guilty to the offence, claiming he had driven extremely slowly past the group and was unable to move further across.

“The video evidence clearly showed that Miley had no consideration for the cyclists on that day, and when he appeared at magistrates’ court, he changed his plea to guilty."

Police said Miley's driving fell below the standard of a competent and careful driver, which could have very easily ended in tragic consequences.

They said the driver should have come to a stop to allow the cyclists to pass safely.

Miley pleaded guilty when he appeared before magistrates on 18 March and received five points on his driving licence, a fine of £1,008 and was ordered to pay £100 in costs and a £101 victim surcharge.

PC Allsopp-Clarke added: “The success of Operation Snap is down to the continued support from the public, who enable us to take action against driving offences we otherwise wouldn’t see.

“Hopefully this case demonstrates that we take all instances of poor driving very seriously and we will prosecute offenders accordingly, which can only be a good thing to help keep our roads safer.”