Nigel Mills, 55, was arrested after being clocked by a police speed gun for doing 89mph near the village of Margaretting, heading north on the A12.
He was driving in his DeLorean, a sports car made famous by the 80s movie trilogy of Back to the Future. In the 1985 film, Marty McFly (Michael J Fox) can travel back and forth through time once the DeLorean hits 88mph.
Nigel Mills, an avid Back to the Future fan, denied that he was attempting the same stunt by saying: “It was at 11am on Sunday and the road was completely clear. I saw the guy with the speed gun and thought I check my speed. I can honestly say I was not trying to time travel.”
He was summoned to Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court for allegedly breaking the speed limit on November 15 last year. However the trial was thrown out of court as the two police officers who caught Mills were absent.
Nigel Mills joked after the result saying: “I was being prosecuted for going 89mph in a DeLorean, [but] wasn’t something meant to happen at 88mph?”
A spokesman for the Essex Police said: “The officer in this incident is currently deployed on specialist duties on a police operation.
“The procedural issue here is regrettable; however Essex Police wants to make it clear we do not tolerate excessive speeds or poor driving on our roads.”
The ‘Fatal 4’ offences
The police are trying to clamp down on dangerous driving, and excessive speeding is one of the ‘Fatal 4’ common offences that the police will be clamping down on more regularly to reduce the risk of road accidents occurring.
Another one of the ‘Fatal 4’ offences is misusing technology; this includes the use of mobile phones whilst driving or in stationary traffic. A study by the RAC found that:
- 48% of drivers admitted using handhelds in stationary traffic
- 31% of drivers used a handheld to make a call in moving traffic
- 19% of drivers sent a text, email or posted on social media while in moving traffic
- 22% of drivers had taken a photograph while in stationary traffic
- 14% of drivers managed the same offence whilst the car was in motion
In 2014, a fifth of all serious and fatal road accidents were caused by mobile phone distractions.
Road accidents caused by mobile distractions
The law states it is illegal to ride a motorcycle or drive using a hand-held phone. The rules still apply if you are stopped at the traffic lights or queuing in traffic.
The Back to the Future fan and owner of the DeLorean, Nigel Mills quoted: “When I’m out in it, a few people recognise it (the DeLorean), they slow down and take pictures. Drivers take pictures out their windows and I get approached at petrol stations.”
Drivers that distract themselves with taking photos, if caught, are punishable with 3 penalty points on your license and a fine of £100. However, the real punishment is the guilt and conscience that you will have to live with for the rest of your life when you realise that your action of distracting yourself with a mobile phone while driving has caused a fatality or serious injury in a road accident.
When someone is seriously injured, they may suffer from brain injuries or paralysis to their limbs if the spine is damaged. At Scott Rees & Co, we deal with serious injury and road accident claims on a daily basis. We arrange for road accident victims to see the top specialists in the UK for thorough analysis of their injuries. We arrange for accident victims to receive the best therapy, rehabilitation and aftercare to give accident sufferers the best chance of recovering to how they were before the accident occurred. With our expert guidance, all of the above and more including expenses will be covered by the compensation that you should be awarded and deserve.