Man, 82, crashed girlfriend’s car, jailed for driving with licence that expired in 1995

SINGAPORE – An elderly man without a valid driving licence drove his girlfriend’s car without her permission and crashed the vehicle after stepping on the wrong pedal.

On Oct 22, Loh Chun Meng, 82, was sentenced to two weeks’ jail, fined $2,000 and banned from driving for two years.

He pleaded guilty to three charges – driving without a valid licence, driving without insurance and driving without due care and attention.

A fourth charge for taking away a vehicle without the owner’s consent was taken into consideration for sentencing.

Court documents stated that Loh’s driving licence had expired on Nov 3, 1995.

In October 2023, he stayed at his girlfriend’s home in Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 and woke up the next day feeling pain in his knees.

While the 57-year-old woman was still asleep, he took her car keys to drive to a clinic in Towner Road to get an injection for his knee pain.

After getting his injection, Loh drove to Block 151 Bishan Street 11 to buy breakfast.

At the open-air carpark near the block, he stepped on the accelerator instead of the brake pedal.

This caused the car to move forward, mount a kerb and run into a metal cabinet containing gas cylinders belonging to a nearby shop.

Loh then reversed the car back onto the road, mounted another kerb and struck a lamp post.

As a result of his actions, the car’s rear windscreen was crumpled and cracked, and its left rear portion dented and scratched.

The door of the metal cabinet was also dented, while the lamp post was undamaged.

The prosecution sought two to four weeks’ jail, a $2,000 fine and 24 months’ disqualification from driving for Loh.

“The accused was aware that his previous driving licence had expired and that he was driving without a licence. Furthermore, the accused had no reasonable explanation for driving without a licence,” said Deputy Public Prosecutor Intan Suhaily Abu Bakar.

If Loh had wanted to see a doctor for his knee pain, he could have woken up his girlfriend and asked her to drive instead, she added.

For driving a car without a licence, Loh could have been jailed for up to three years, fined up to $10,000, or both.

For driving without an insurance policy in force, he could have been jailed for up to three months, fined up to $1,000, or both.

For driving without due care and attention, he could have been jailed for up to six months, fined up to $1,000, or both.

For these offences, Loh could also have been banned from driving for various durations.