Dangerous driver 'running late for work' loses her licence - and her job

A Tamahere woman busted by dashcam footage overtaking a truck on a blind corner told police she was "running late for work".

However, unfortunately for 51-year-old Paula Rees she would now lose her job as she had no other way of getting to work.

Rees was driving her silver Mazda on Lee Martin Rd, Tamahere, on July 29 when she overtook a truck on a blind corner.

Coming the other way was Vivek Jacob who rounded the bend to be confronted with Rees' car.

"I was heading right towards the bend, but you couldn't see what was behind the bend.

"I had to jam on the brakes and swerve to the left but not too much because there was no gap to the left.

"The truck on the other end also had to swerve to his left, so it was a close call."

He said it was "really lucky" there were not any cyclists or joggers in the area at the time.

Police were unaware of the incident until it was posted on social media and Rees was later charged with dangerous driving, where she told police she was running late for work.

She appeared in the Hamilton District Court yesterday before Community Magistrate Stevan Cole who was flummoxed by her driving.

He said he often dealt with offenders whose bad driving caused serious harm to other innocent motorists, but it was often due to careless driving.

"But you have made a deliberate decision to drive this way so you're fortunate you're not looking at more serious charges."

Duty solicitor Hayley Carson said Rees would lose her job as she could not afford to apply for a limited licence, and she had no other way of getting to work.

She also urged Cole not to impose a fine due to her financial constraints.

While Cole said it was unfortunate she couldn't afford the limited licence his hands were tied.

Rees was convicted and fined $200, ordered to pay court costs of $130 and disqualified from driving for six months.