“Thick boots” stopped Audi driver braking during A617 crash, court hears

Sydney Collinson, 29, “panicked” when the A4’s footbreak was unresponsive approaching queuing traffic at junction 29 of the M1 on October 19.

Chesterfield Magistrates Court heard that - unable to slow down - she “had no choice” but to try and squeeze in-between two lanes and the cars sat side-by-side in them.

However she smashed into two cars, rear-ending one of them and leaving its driver and passenger with whiplash, back and knee injuries.

Prosecutor Becky Allsop said: “Miss Collinson was spoken to at the scene - her vehicle was also heavily damaged.

“A police examiner confirmed the footbrake system was totally defect-free - his opinion was that the footbrake would have overridden any cruise control.”

Ms Allsop added that Collinson was “a lady of previous good character”.

Collinson’s solicitor John Hay said his client, who had never been before the courts before and “never had so much as a penalty point” had been left “traumatised” by the accident.

He said: “It was simply a moment of panic as she couldn’t bring the vehicle to break.

“She thinks the explanation could be this - that she was wearing some quite thick boots with rubber soles and wonders if she had been braking on the floor rather than on the brake.”

Collinson, of Gorse Bank Lane, Baslow, admitted driving without due care and attention.

She was handed six penalty points, a £403 fine, £85 court costs and a £161 victim surcharge.