A BUSINESSMAN has kept his driving licence despite seriously injuring a pedestrian in York city centre.

Resham Singh Dhesi should have given way to the female pedestrian in Church Street, York Magistrates Court heard, but instead, his car hit her.

The woman spent several days in hospital following the collision on August 18 and has now instructed solicitors specialising in personal injury to claim compensation for her injury.

According to the prosecution she had a broken pelvis. According to the defence, she broke her leg.

Desi, 49, of Manor Garth, Wigginton, pleaded guilty to driving a red Toyota Yaris in a public place without due care and attention in that he hit the woman from behind and knocked her over.

Katy Vowles, prosecuting, said her pelvis had been broken in the collision. The woman who did not speak English well needed an interpreter to speak to police.

District judge Adrian Lower fined Dhesi £200 and ordered him to pay a £20 statutory surcharge and £85 prosecution costs. He gave him four penalty points to add to the three he already had on his driving licence for speeding in a 30 mph zone.

A court can disqualify a driver for careless driving but cannot imprison him. If a driver gets 12 penalty points on their licence, they are banned from driving for six months.

"This seems to be a matter of you momentarily losing concentration. You need to take more care with your driving," he told Dhesi.

For Dhesi, Kevin Blount said the woman had stepped into the road and Dhesi had not realised she was there.

"He accepts he should have been aware of the pedestrian in those circumstances. It was a momentary lapse. He accepts he should have seen her."