An 84-year-old woman crashed her car into the rear of another vehicle on Moray’s busiest trunk road, flipping her own vehicle onto its side.
Both Fiona Sinclair and her 82-year-old sister, Jean MacDonald, suffered fractured sternums in the collision, which took place on the A96 Aberdeen to Inverness route near Lhanbryde.
But the pensioner was able to persuade Sheriff Olga Pasportnikov that the incident was a “one off”, caused by an error of judgment, when she appeared at Elgin Sheriff Court yesterday.
The court heard that the incident happened at 10.25am on Saturday, June 25.
Sinclair, who has been driving for 53 years, rammed her green Vauxhall Meriva into a brown Peugeot 2008 Estate after it slowed down to allow another car to turn right from the A96 into a garden centre.
Fiscal, Alison Wylie, said: “The accused didn’t seem to see where the vehicle was stopped and collided with the rear of it. That caused the other vehicle to go into the verge, and her own car flipped onto its side.”
The retiree’s lawyer, Brent Lockie, said his client had never received “a single penalty point” in more than 50 years on the road.
He added: “This was an error of judgment, she has her eyes tested every year and passed her last one.
“There aren’t any concerns around her fitness to drive, she has never had an accident since and still drives to bowling and golf regularly without incident.”
Sinclair, of Elgin’s Leuchars Drive, admitted driving her car without due care and attention and failing to observe the road.
Sheriff Pasportnikov said she was “prepared to believe” the collision was a one-off mistake.
She fined Sinclair £450 and endorsed her licence with four penalty points.
