Man caused €7,250 worth of damage to injured party's car in Mayo dangerous driving incident

A DRIVER of a car who lost control of his vehicle had left the road when it came over the crest of a hill at Lugatemple on the main Claremorris/Balla Road.

As a result of the incident, Dmytro Shulikin, aged 51, with an address at Facefield, Claremorris, pleaded guilty before Judge Sandra Murphy at Castlebar District Court to a charge of dangerous driving which resulted in the driver of a car he collided with suffering whiplash and injuries to her back.

Along with suffering injuries because of the crash, €7,250 worth of damage was caused to the injured party’s car, while the defendant’s vehicle was written-off.

Garda Inspector Maria Diffily, outlining the facts in the case, said the defendant provided a full statement about the accident which occurred on October 27, 2024.

A statement was also provided by the injured party who described how the defendant’s car had left the road as it came over the crest of a hill.

She tried to avoid the collision, but the car crashed into her, resulting in injuries to her back while she also suffered whiplash injuries because of the collision.

Judge Murphy was told that the defendant was fully insured and that a personal injury claim by the injured party was in train, while compensation had been paid for the damage caused to the injured party’s car.

Mr. Gary Mulchrone, solicitor for the defendant, said his client was a married man with one child and was very remorseful over the entire incident which was caused by excessive speed on his part.

“He is native of Ukraine and came to Ireland in 2023 to get away from the troubles there and has found work as a life guard in a leisure complex.”

Mr. Mulchrone said his client has no previous convictions and accepts it was his driving at an excessive speed which resulted in him losing control of the vehicle as it came over the brow of a hill.

Added Mr. Mulchrone: “He is truly remorseful for what happened but thankfully he has insurance cover and a claim for personal injuries by the injured party is currently in train while his insurance has paid for the damage to the injured party’s car which was a write-off.

“He accepts he will be without a car as he will be facing a two-year ban but his wife will be able to drive.”

Judge Murphy said it was fortunate that the defendant had full insurance cover on the car and she was taking that into consideration but added it was a very serious case of dangerous driving and she had no hesitation in imposing a two-year driving ban along with a fine of €350.

* Funded under the Courts Reporting Scheme.