Man drove van into wall

A man who drove his van into a wall has been handed five points on his licence and a £405 fine at Lerwick Sheriff Court.

William Ratter knocked down a section of a resident’s wall when his van collided with it in Baltasound Public Hall car park, while a private birthday function was going on inside the hall.

The 50-year-old, who appeared in court on Thursday, pled guilty to not providing information, including his name, address or vehicle registration to a suitable person following the incident, and he also failed to report it to police in a reasonable time.

Procurator fiscal Duncan Mackenzie said the incident had occurred in the evening on 27th April this year, when Ratter collided with a neighbouring property.

Ratter, of Brakefield, Unst, said the van had difficulty getting out of reverse and that he had made a mistake with that and not realised the car was in gear, according to defence agent Tommy Allan.

Defending his client, Mr Allan said that there was no police station on Unst to report to but that “of course” Ratter could have phoned the police. The defence agent also said Ratter had gone back after the incident and repaired the wall.

Arguing against disqualifying Ratter from driving, Mr Allan said that the licence was “important to him”.

Sentencing Ratter, Sheriff Ian Cruickshank gave him a financial penalty of £405 and five penalty points.