R-plate driver banned from roads

An R-plate driver who seriously injured two passengers in a Mountain Road crash has been banned from the roads until he passes an extended driving test.

William Barnes of St Stephen's Meadow in Sulby appeared before High Bailiff Jayne Hughes at Douglas Courthouse.

The 18 year old had previously admitted two counts of causing serious bodily harm by driving without due care and consideration at Guthrie's Memorial on October 27 last year.

The court heard just a month after passing his test, he picked up two people he studied with at King William's College and drove over the mountain.

He lost control, and the car ended up embedded in a wall - one passenger suffered a torn bowel while another sustained bruised lungs and kidneys as well as a broken rib.

Mrs Hughes said he'd been driving too fast and his lack of experience had led to the crash, telling him cars were a weapon which needed to be treated very carefully.

She fined him £1,500 and ordered him to pay £50 costs as well as banning him from driving for a year.