This is the moment a drunken driving instructor was caught on camera after he crashed his car into a ditch on the way to a lesson.
Timothy Howells, from Carmarthenshire, 54, was on his way to collect a pupil when his VW Polo learner car smashed off the road on February 20 on the A484 between Pembrey and Kidwelly, West Wales.
He was found four times over the limit and was later arrested by police on suspicion of drink driving.
Passing motorists saw Howells in the ditch and he was filmed peering out of the open driver’s side window.
One shouted to him: ‘Plenty to drink last night or what? You can’t park there mate.’
In another video, a driver said: ‘Just a reminder now, you don’t want to have driving lessons off this guy.’
The instructor appeared at Llanelli Magistrates’ Court where he was given an eight-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, and banned from driving for 30 months.
A police spokesperson said: ‘While in custody, Howells provided a second evidential breath test reading of 132 – four times over the limit.’
Chief Inspector Christina Fraser said: ‘Mr Howells was operating in a position of great trust and responsibility; Roads Policing officers have worked quickly in conjunction with colleagues, CPS and the DVSA, to ensure learner drivers and other road users have been safeguarded from an individual who presented a serious risk of harm.’
According to its website, Red Driving School is ‘the largest trainer of driving instructors in the UK, having trained over 10,000 people to reach full ADI qualification’. The company was named the national driving school of the year for 2021.
The company says ‘nearly all driving instructors in the UK are self-employed, whether as an independent driving school or as part of a franchised national school’.
Red Driving School has declined to comment.
