Elderly Geraldton driver given three-month disqualification for hitting a motorcyclist

An elderly Geraldton woman has been disqualified from driving for three months after hitting a motorcyclist earlier this year.

Betty May Ford appeared in Geraldton Magistrates Court on Monday for sentencing after pleading guilty to two counts of careless driving causing grievous bodily harm.

The 91-year-old’s lawyer told the court her client had been driving for 74 years and this was her first accident.

Mrs Ford lives in Minnenooka and regularly travels through the intersection to visit her daughter.

Police said Mrs Ford was driving her Hyundai Accent north along Eastlyn Drive around 12.55pm on May 5 when she saw a vehicle towing a trailer.

She waited for the vehicle to pass before turning right on to Horwood Road, however, failed to see a motorcycle rider who was behind the vehicle towing trailer.

The motorcyclist collided with her front bumper at slow speed, causing the victim to be thrown from the bike and sustaining a fractured left ankle.

Magistrate Angus Hockton said the fact that the motorcycle wasn’t in her line of vision does provide an explanation as to why she didn’t see it.

He told the court the letters of support they received indicated a kind caring and giving person, who does extensive work in the community.

He acknowledged that the disqualification would have more impact on Mrs Ford, as someone who lives in a remote location with limited access to transport.

She has been disqualified from driving for three months and fined $750 for each offence.