Car insurance news
'Lunatic' driver denied cheap car insurance
Judges at Durham Crown Court have made sure a local teenager convicted of "lunatic driving" will have to wait many years before he has another chance of obtaining a cheap car insurance quote.
The young driver led police on a maniacal late-night chase through the villages and surrounding countryside near the town of Bishop Auckland, reaching speeds upwards of 80mph through 30mph-rated residential zones.
He ignored road signs and junction markings, forcing other drivers to take evasive action and pedestrians to leap out of his way, and drove part of the time with no headlights.
The so-called joyride began when the 19-year-old took the wheel of a Vauxhall Vectra belonging to his girlfriend's father, heedless of the fact he was not named on the latter's motor insurance policy.
Police then spotted him in the driver's seat, and when he took off at high speed they gave chase.
The officers said later that their patrol car had struggled to keep up with the fleeing Vauxhall, and one described the pursuit as the most dangerous incident of his career.
The car was finally brought to a halt in a pub car park, after police deployed a stinger device and burst two of its tyres.
The young driver now faces a 20-month custodial sentence and a three year driving ban, after which time he will be allowed to retake his test and, if successful, get back on the road.
On top of all that, he has slim hope of finding cheap car insurance cover for the remainder of his driving career.
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