A lorry driver narrowly avoided a collision after he misjudged an overtake on the A96.
Stuart Revill admitted careless driving at Inverness Sheriff Court, following the incident on April 26 last year near the Auldearn junction.
His solicitor told the court Revill was “aware that there could have been far more serious consequences”.
At the hearing in Inverness, Revill admitted an amended charge of careless driving.
Fiscal depute Shay Treanor told the court that on the date in question, a driver travelling from Inverness to Aberdeenshire on the A96 had become aware of Revill’s lorry behind them as they travelled through Nairn.
He said that as the two vehicles travelled down the hill towards the Auldearn junction, the witness “became aware of the accused vehicle coming alongside him and, in fact, overtaking him”.
Driver narrowly avoided collision
“The vehicle coming the other way had to brake and the collision was avoided, albeit relatively narrowly,” he said.
Solicitor Darran Khorasani told the court 55-year-old Revill had been an HGV driver for two decades.
He said: “Mr Revill would like to apologise to the court for this misjudgement. He did not see the other vehicle coming and misjudged the space available to him.
“He is aware that there could have been far more serious consequences for himself and other drivers.”
The solicitor told Sheriff Ian Cruickshank that disqualification would result in his client losing his livelihood entirely.
Careless HGV driver avoids disqualification
Sheriff Cruickshank said: “The matter was originally to be prosecuted by way of dangerous driving; The Crown have accepted that this is a case of careless driving.
“The narrative related to an overtaking manoeuvre where you were driving a motor lorry, it is still accepted that the manoeuvre you carried out was not safe in the circumstances.”
The sheriff said that the offence fell short of necessitating a disqualification and instead fined Revill, of Anderson Drive, Fortrose, £940 and endorsed his licence with seven penalty points.