Dangerous, 100mph A3 Driver Loses Licence

Published on: 16 Feb, 2024
Updated on: 17 Feb, 2024

A Woking man has lost his driving licence after being found guilty of dangerous driving on the A3.

A Roads Policing Unit was conducting an anti-social driving patrol on the A3 when an officer noticed a grey Volkswagen travelling along the Esher Bypass near Painshill and Cobham in April 2023.

Sgt Gary Lefort witnessed the Volkswagen driving at speed and undertaking other road users exceeding the temporary 50 miles per hour limit in place for the roadworks.

The vehicle was then seen tailgating a Vauxhall Corsa travelling at the speed limit, trying to force it out of the way by flashing its lights and driving close behind it in an aggressive manner. When the Vauxhall Corsa moved into a nearside lane, the Volkswagen accelerated sharply again to 91 miles an hour.

It then undertook a Mercedes at 100 miles an hour, before undertaking three further vehicles at 107 miles per hour. Having seen enough to be convinced that the driver posed a significant risk to public safety, the vehicle was stopped.

The driver, who became agitated and confrontational, tried to justify his behaviour by claiming that someone was chasing him and trying to run him off the road. He was reported for dangerous driving, and was sentenced earlier this month at Guildford Magistrates’ Court.

53-year-old Andrew Simpson, of Woking, was disqualified from driving for 18 months. After this disqualification period has ended, he will have to apply for a provisional driving licence, and then pass both the theory test and an extended practical driving test to be able to regain his full licence.

Simpson was also ordered to pay costs and a victim surcharge totalling £199 and required to complete 200 hours of unpaid work.

Sgt Lefort said, “The manner of driving displayed by Andrew Simpson exemplifies exactly why Roads Policing Units utilise unmarked vehicles and robustly enforce Fatal 5 offences. I hope the sentence handed down by the court serves as a deterrent for other drivers who may think of driving in such a manner on Surrey’s roads.”

The “Fatal 5” relates to five main contributory factors that cause serious road traffic collisions. They are: