Manoeuvre led to three-car pile-up

Ryan Suddes, 20, of Wide-open, North Tyneside, shot past the private ambulance in his Volkswagen Scirocco as he drove up an incline which blocked his view of oncoming traffic.

Travelling in the opposite direction was a farmer in a Mitsubishi L200 truck, who was horrified to see the Volkswagen’s headlights heading straight for him just before a bend near the Robin Hood’s Bay turn-off on the A171.

Suddes’ Volkswagen struck the front of the truck before spinning out of control and colliding with the ambulance, which in turn caused the VW to career straight into an Audi A6 driven by a woman who had been travelling behind the farmer.

Prosecutor Jeremy Lindsay said one of the Volkswagen’s front wheels came off during the series of smashes. It came to a halt on the opposite side of the road.

The female Audi driver suffered chest injuries and was struggling to breathe in the immediate aftermath of the crash. She also suffered back injuries and severe pain in her hand.

In a victim statement read out in court, the woman said she was off work for weeks after the crash and her car was a near wreck.

Mr Lindsay said the truck driver suffered shoulder and back injuries. All three vehicles were damaged in the crash.

He added that the ambulance was carrying a patient in the back but there were no injuries to anyone inside the vehicle, including the driver and paramedics, who helped casualties at the scene.

Police arrived and Suddes immediately owned up to his recklessness. He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and appeared for sentence at York on Tuesday, when he appeared in the dock wearing a smart grey suit and tie.

Judge Paul Batty QC gave Suddes a 12-month jail sentence, but suspended this for two years. Suddes will have to complete 200 hours’ unpaid work. He was also given an 18-month driving ban.