Tourists who were left with life-changing injuries after a driver ploughed into them have hit out after she was allowed to keep her licence.
Gail McAllister, Rhona Smith, Melanie Anderson and Irene Morrison were sightseeing in Portsoy last July when they were hit by 81-year-old Marjory Stewart.
The pensioner, who confused her car’s brake pedal for its accelerator, was found guilty of careless driving at Banff Sheriff Court last week and was fined £400.
But she was not banned from the roads.
Ms Morrison, who was trapped between her own vehicle and Stewart’s, suffered serious leg injuries and has yet to return to work.
The health inspector said: “Shouldn’t she be required to sit a driving test, at the very least?”
Ms Morrison, 51, fractured two bones in her leg and suffered muscle and soft-tissue loss. She also damaged ligaments in her knee.
“I went from being a very independent, active person – golfing, swimming, walking, spin classes – to being housebound, shuffling about with a Zimmer frame and relying on everyone else,” she added.
“Unless someone has ever experienced such severe injury and loss of mobility and independence, they can never fully appreciate what it is like to have your life put on hold.”
OAP who ploughed motability car into tourists avoids driving ban
Ms Anderson, 50, also had to undergo surgery to repair damage to her knee.
The accountant, who has also not returned to work, said her leg was locked in a brace for three months following Stewart’s mistake.
“Coming to terms with such a sudden and painful road accident is extremely hard,” she said.
“The verdict feels as though no one is taking responsibility. A small fine and no loss of licence is hardly adequate.
“Surely there is a case for people who have caused such serious damage to have their driving assessed?”
Stewart, of Bellshill, Lanarkshire, declined to comment following her court case.
She had told her solicitor, David Cairns, that the events had “marked” her.
Sheriff Valerie Johnson said the consequences of her driving were “extremely grave and life-changing”.
