McDonald’s crash: 17-year-old driver fined, loses licence after only holding it for less than a week

Police say a teenage driver who only had her licence for less than a week is lucky she was not seriously injured or killed after she pulled out in front of oncoming traffic outside McDonald’s and crashed into a Landcruiser. According to traffic police, a Holden Commodore sedan turning right from McDonald’s on Durlacher Street and a Toyota Landcruiser collided about 9.25am on Monday. The impact caused the Commodore, which had the 17-year-old driver and a 15-year-old passenger inside, to be pushed to the opposite side of the road and completely caved in the driver’s side door. Police say the 17-year-old suffered shock, a concussion, and an injury to her ear. The teenage passenger was treated for a blood nose. Both girls were taken to Geraldton Regional Hospital. The 49-year-old man who was driving the Landcruiser was uninjured. But he was shaken up at the scene where he said the other driver might have been checking her order as she left the drive-thru, adding there was no time for him to break before impact. Police issued the teenage driver with an infringement for careless driving and confirmed she had only held her driver’s licence for six days. As a result, her licence will be disqualified. Geraldton police traffic officer-in-charge Sergeant George Tilbury said the 17-year-old escaped a potentially fatal crash, and reminded drivers to be cautious at all times. “The driver of the Holden Commodore was extremely lucky, as she could have been seriously injured or killed. Inexperience is a factor in this crash, so it is timely to remind all drivers to be patient and look multiple times before pulling out on to a road,” he said. WA Country Health Service confirmed on Monday that the teenager was in a stable condition at Geraldton Regional Hospital.