A sales advisor who sunk four pints before flipping his car has had a lucky escape after a delayed breath test meant he wasn’t charged with drink-driving.

Jason Mark Atherton – who pleaded guilty to driving without due care and attention at Teesside Magistrates Court – had the drinks before getting behind the wheel of his Hyundai I10 in Middlesbrough last month.

The 23-year-old said that he “must have skidded” before crashing into a Mini Cooper on September 23, reports Teesside Live.

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Prosecutor Rachel Butt told the court that just before 10.30pm, Atherton’s car hit the Mini, which resulted in the Hyundai overturning.

Atherton, of Wordsworth Road, Eston, managed to get out and was breathalysed at the scene. He was over the limit but was taken to hospital because of a cut to his head.

He wasn’t seen by medics until 2.30am, and by the time cops were able to conduct a second alcohol reading four hours after the crash, Atherton was below the drink-drive limit.

Ms Butt stated that Atherton was “lucky” there was such a delay, otherwise he would have been charged with drink-driving.

During his police interview, Atherton admitted he had drunk four pints and estimated he’d been driving at about 30mpm or 35 mph when the crash happened.

Atherton, who was not represented during the hearing, said: “I want to apologise for what I’ve done.”

He described his actions as “silly” but stated that he needed his driving licence for work.

“It was a silly mistake. I’ve never drunk-drove in my life,” he said.

Judge Helen Cousins told Atherton that he was “very lucky indeed” that police “didn’t manage to take a sample in time”.

“You’ve had a very lucky escape,” she added.

Atherton was ordered to pay fines and costs of £623 and had nine points added to his licence.

“I appreciate you not taking [my licence] off me,” he told the judge.

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