Former Arsenal and Liverpool winger Jermaine Pennant has been spared a driving ban after admitting to driving without insurance to collect his partner, who had fractured her foot. The 43-year-old ex-winger was given a six-month conditional discharge after a judge ruled there were exceptional reasons why he should not be banned.
Police stop and court hearing
Pennant was stopped by police, and bodycam footage seemed to show him buying insurance on his mobile while in the car, Highbury Magistrates' Court was told on Monday. Police spotted Pennant driving his Audi A5 S Line without insurance on the A406 eastbound on September 2 last year, the court had previously heard.
The TalkSport presenter informed district judge Vanessa Lloyd on Monday that his cover had run out the day before. He explained that he had been looking for a new policy when his partner, who had hurt her foot, phoned him to ask him to drive her home.
Pennant's explanation
He said: "The next day, her foot was swelled to the point where we had to take her to hospital, and they said, 'Yes, you've broken your foot and three toes'." The former Liverpool FC player stated that he had bought one-day insurance 10 minutes prior to being stopped but hadn't realised it wouldn't come into effect immediately.
Prosecutor Deborah Kol suggested to Pennant that body-worn footage seemed to show him buying the insurance in the car, but he maintained he had been attempting to open the insurance app to demonstrate to officers that he was covered. "I wasn't purchasing anything. I was trying to get the insurance up, that's what I was trying to get up to show," he added.
Judgment and consequences
Pennant, who had previously denied the offence, revealed he changed his plea after the insurance company clarified that the policy did not kick in straight away. He admitted to the court that he had "messed up by 10 minutes" but accepted that "rules are rules". Judge Lloyd decided that Pennant would not have points added to his driving licence on the grounds that he was "misled" by his insurance app and believed the policy would be effective immediately.
The six-month conditional discharge means the ex-footballer and pundit avoids a driving ban and will not be fined, but he was instructed to pay a £26 victim surcharge. This comes over two decades after he served a one-month jail term for a drink-driving conviction. At the age of 22, he became the first Premier League footballer to play a match wearing an electronic tag when he turned out for Birmingham City just 48 hours after being freed.
