A company boss caught speeding at 119mph in his luxury brand new BMW moaned he would be unable to afford to get taxis to his local gym if he was banned from driving.
Director Dean Crawford, 42, faced being barred under the totting up procedure after he was clocked speeding on the M58 westbound near Skelmersdale, Lancashire.
His M135i XDrive Auto is worth around £37,000 - but Crawford, who is director of three companies, including a waste disposal business and a window shutter repair firm, has refused pleas to sell it to free up funds for travel expenses, instead telling the court he was on benefits and making a plea for "exceptional hardship".
Crawford claimed he needed the BMW as he could not afford to pay for taxis to get to the gym and also for visits to see his mother and daughter.
JPs in Sefton, near Liverpool refused the businessman's plea for mercy after prosecutor Matt Routly advised him: ''You still have that BMW. You could sell that and that would raise quite a lot of funds?
''It could pay for quite a lot of taxis and buy you a bicycle. That's very often the price people have to pay when they speed all the time."
Crawford, formerly of Whitefield, near Bury, Greater Manchester but now living in Blackburn, had recently taken delivery of the car when he was clocked driving nearly 50mph over the limit on November 21 of last year.
He already had nine points on his licence - two for speeding offences and the other for contravening a traffic signal.
But Crawford, who has previously had a Mercedes AMG and an Audi, told the court he suffered various health issues said he was temporarily paralysed for a year after being stabbed in the spine in 2014.
After a period of physiotherapy, he has since recovered the use of his legs but said he can’t walk far and still requires daily trips to the gym both for his physical condition and to help his mental health. He claimed he was on benefits so would not be able to afford to go to the gym or too see his family as often as he needs to.
When asked why he could not simply sell his car he replied: “A driving ban would run out after six months and then I would not have a car. I am not working," he said. "I am on benefit for people with medical conditions." ”
He said he was getting £975 per month in handouts but had to pay £345 of that in rent and when asked about getting to the gym, he said, "It's in the middle of nowhere on an industrial estate.
''I would have to a get a taxi to the bus stop and then a bus and then the same on the way back. I would only be able to do that once a week because of the price."
When asked about using trains and buses to see his mother who lives in Blackley, he said: "I would take taxis, trains and buses. I could probably only afford to go once a week." When asked if would be able to visit his nine year old daughter without the car, he said: "I would not be able to see her", then explained the multiple trains and taxis he would need to take.
He confirmed he ran a business but said he'd had a breakdown during lockdown and claimed the only thing he now owns is his BMW.
During the hearing, Mr Routly first checked with the magistrates that they were fully aware of the speed that Crawford had been driving at before asking him whether he could make use of taxis and public transport
Refusing the application, the magistrates banned Crawford from driving for six months, fined him £120 and made him pay £136 in costs and victim surcharge.
“We have considered everything very carefully,” chair of the bench Christina Hills, said, “We do not think there's sufficient grounds on this occasion to grant a non-application of the disqualification rules on the exceptional hardship basis.''
Crawford is now planning to appeal against the ban to a crown court judge. The period of disqualification was suspended pending the forthcoming hearing.
