A MAN from East Brent has been handed a court bill of £745 after he was caught driving without insurance near Weston-super-Mare. 

Alexandru Madalin Gatitu, of Jarvis Lane, drove a Dacia car on the A370 near Lympsham "when there was no insurance in force covering that use of the vehicle". 

Gatitu, 30, committed the offence on March 10, 2021, and pleaded guilty under the single justice procedure on November 17.

On Wednesday, he was fined £600 by Taunton Magistrates' Court.

He was also ordered to pay £85 in court costs and a £60 surcharge to fund victim services. 

Gatitu was handed six penalty points, but he avoided a totting up disqualification usually given to drivers who rack up 12 points within a three-year period.

This was due to "mitigating circumstances", one of which is his employment as a lorry driver.

Court documents said a driving ban would cause him to lose his job, which provides his family's main income, and could put him "at risk" of losing his home.

A driving ban would also prevent him from driving his child to school.

His guilty plea was "taken into account when imposing sentence". 

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