A RACEHORSE trainer who transported a horse without insurance for the vehicle and while he was not wearing a seatbelt has been fined £2,275 – and warned he could be banned from driving if he reoffends.
Karl Kukk (55) was spotted driving his grey Citroën horsebox along Route de Vinchelez in St Ouen on 5 March without wearing a seatbelt, the Magistrate’s Court heard. The police officers who stopped him also discovered the vehicle was uninsured.
Advocate Sarah Dale, defending, told the court that Kukk had made “a one-off mistake”. She said that outside the racing season he only kept one of his three horseboxes insured, and had been unable to use the one with insurance on the day in question owing to the behaviour of the horse.
Advocate Dale argued: “Disqualification would be disproportionate.”
Relief Magistrate David Le Cornu noted that Kukk had no previous convictions and relied on being able to drive for his livelihood, so agreed not to ban him from driving.
He fined him £2,200 for driving without insurance and £75 for not wearing a seatbelt.
He also endorsed Kukk’s licence – so that it will bear a record of the offence – and told him: “If you come back to court on the same charge you are likely to be disqualified.”
