A drink-driver who crashed his car in Colby has been fined £1,000 and banned from driving for two years.

Christian Wheeler rang the police himself after the accident at Glen Road.

Magistrates also ordered the 38-year-old to take an extended driving test at the end of his ban.

Prosecuting advocate Roger Kane told magistrates that police received a 999 call from Wheeler on April 27 at 4.11pm.

When officers arrived at the scene Wheeler, who lives at Glen Close in Glen Maye, was standing next to his Renault Clio which had suffered extensive damage.

He failed a roadside breathalyser test and was subsequently arrested.

He was taken to police headquarters but the intoxilyzer machine was not working so a urine sample was taken.

This produced a result of 82 but had been taken three and a half hours after the crash. The legal limit for urine is 107.

An expert’s calculation concluded that, at the time of driving, the result in blood would have been 129. The legal limit for blood is 80.

When interviewed by police, Wheeler said he had driven from Glen Maye and had just been out for a drive to Castletown and Port Erin.

He said that the turn where he crashed was sharper than he had anticipated.

Wheeler said that he had drunk a bottle of wine the evening before.

Defence advocate Deborah Myerscough said that her client had held a clean driving licence for 21 years and asked for credit to be given for the fact that he had called the police himself.

The advocate said that Wheeler had not driven since April due to the fact that the cost of repairing the Clio was more than the value of the car itself.

Ms Myerscough said that her client had some underlying issues which were already being dealt with.

‘He has taken appropriate steps to deal with matters which have led to him being in court today,’ said the advocate.

‘It was an unpleasant time at the police station. The intoxilyzer machine was broken, and the doctor wasn’t able to find a vein to take blood.

‘He has learnt his lesson. It has been an experience he would not wish to repeat.’

Magistrates chair Julian Ashcroft told Wheeler: ‘I’m sure you appreciate how long alcohol can stay in your system now.’

Wheeler was also ordered to pay £125 prosecution costs which he will pay, along with the fine, at a rate of £100 per month.