Hull man pleads guilty to careless driving near Horncastle in April

A driver who pulled into the path of a motorcyclist, causing a collision that left the rider with multiple injuries, has today been handed a community order to undertake 135 hours of unpaid work, comply with rehabilitation activity, and has been disqualified from driving for 12 months.

Paul Brinkley was driving his Renault Captur northbound, along the B1225 from Horncastle towards Caistor, when he pulled into the path of the Suzuki RX1000 bike, on 14 April this year.

The rider, a man in his 60s from the Grimsby area, had been travelling along the A631 from North Willingham towards Ludford. Following the collision he was propelled into the air and suffered injuries including a fractured radius and 18 broken ribs. The latter injury resulted in pneumothorax, a condition where air leaks from the lung and fills the space between the lung and chest wall, and another that went into his heart, almost killing him.

At Lincoln Magistrates’ Court today (30 October) 61-year-old Brinkley, of 20^th Avenue, Hull pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by careless or inconsiderate driving.

The court heard how Brinkley was looking forward rather than left when he crossed into the second lane of the A631, in the lead-up to the collision with the bike.

Our investigation showed that the bike was travelling at around 40mph, and that Brinkley had failed to give way at the junction.

Specialist collision investigators carried out analysis and concluded that from Brinkley’s location, he should have been able to see the bike coming for approximately six to nine seconds before making the decision to pull out.  According to tests, for vehicles of a similar size it was measured to have taken them on average three to four seconds to cross over the junction in the same way, which would have given him sufficient time to have seen the on-coming bike, which was measured as being seen 105 metres away.

PC David Millican, the officer in charge of the case, said: “These calculations demonstrate how critical seconds are when driving, and how a lapse in concentration, if only for a split-second, can have life-threatening or life-changing outcomes at best, or at worst, sadly very tragic consequences.  It reinforces the importance of being mindful of distances being covered by other vehicles when pulling out, particularly in front of motorbikes.

“Thankfully the rider of the Suzuki motorbike survived this collision and while he was miraculously discharged from hospital only a week later. It is anticipated that his recovery time is likely to take up to two years.

“I urge every motorist to be mindful when pulling out. Wait until there’s a suitable gap, and take your time – not lives.”