A 77-year-old driver has had to fork out thousands of pounds in fines and costs after narrowly passing a cyclist on a road in South Wales.
Wayne Humphreys has maintained that he was 'at least four feet away' from the unidentified biker after the incident took place in Bridgend on 15 September, 2021.
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However, footage from the incident shows he didn't move over as far as other vehicles when overtaking the cyclist, instead passing at a narrower distance despite the oncoming lane next to him being empty.
The cyclist reported the incident to roads policing teams and Humphreys was contacted, but he refused to accept any error and did not attend a course or pay a fixed penalty notice.
As a result he ended up in court and was ordered to pay a £1,152 fine, though the 77-year-old has claimed the true cost of the case is more than double that amount.
"I think the fine is absolutely appalling," he said in a comment on the matter. "I am 77 years of age and the last fine I had was 35 to 40 years ago for doing 34 miles per hour in a 30 zone. Other than that, I have never had a fine and I have had a licence for 60 years."
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Though the footage shows him passing close to the cyclist, Humphreys alleged the case 'doesn't make sense'.
"Taking into account the cyclist and his bike there would have still been at least 4ft space," he argued.
Humphreys made clear he has thought about appealing the fines, though admitted it might just eat further into his bank balance.
He continued: "I find it absolutely incredible this has happened. I don’t know whether to appeal it or not. It will probably just cost me more money.
"This has already cost me about £4,500 with the money for the court and the solicitor."
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Commenting on the case, a GoSafe spokesman said: "GoSafe received footage of a white Audi overtaking a cyclist on Pant Hirwaun, Bridgend on Wednesday, 15th September 2021, without leaving enough space to perform the manoeuvre.
"The driver, Wayne Humphreys, from Pontyclun, was contacted and offered a course. The ‘What’s Driving Us’ course is offered to drivers/riders as an alternative to prosecution for the offence of driving without due care and attention.
"Mr Humphreys failed to accept this course and later failed to comply with a fixed penalty notice. This resulted in him appearing in Cardiff Magistrates Court on 8th June 2022.
"He was found guilty of driving without due care and attention. He received 4 penalty points on his license, given a £1152 fine, £620 costs, and a £115 victim surcharge."
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The Highway Code states drivers must give motorcyclists, cyclists and horse riders and horse drawn vehicles 'at least as much room as you would when overtaking a car' when it comes to passing them on the road.
It advises leaving at least 1.5 metres (4.9 feet) when overtaking cyclists at speeds of up to 30mph and more space when overtaking at higher speeds.
"Take extra care and give more space when overtaking motorcyclists, cyclists, horse riders, horse drawn vehicles and pedestrians in bad weather (including high winds) and at night," it continues.
"You should wait behind the motorcyclist, cyclist, horse rider, horse drawn vehicle or pedestrian and not overtake if it is unsafe or not possible to meet these clearances."
Emily Brown