FEARING for his own safety after his car hit a woman on Marlborough High Street a Swindon pensioner fled the scene.

David Hood, 66, of Inglesham Road, Swindon, appeared before magistrates in Swindon in custody after failing to attend court charged with the crash which saw his Vauxhall car collide with Alex Heslop on August 21, 2015.

The court heard how at around 4.30pm Alex Heslop had been with a small group of family members and was paying for parking on Marlborough High Street when Hood’s car hit her, pushing her up onto the bonnet before she slid off and landed on her feet.

Prosecuting, Vyvyan Thatcher said: “He was asked by the family, are you drunk? He said no, he was very tired and drove off. The victim describes herself as crying and being in shock but doesn’t describe any damage to her property.”

Defending him, Mike Pulsford said: “Accidents do happen, Mr Hood obviously wasn’t paying attention. He just didn’t see her. He wasn’t travelling very fast because he was looking for a parking space.”

He added that Hood had left the scene after fearing for his own safety after a man – who wasn’t believed to be part of the family party – began acting aggressively towards him.

“He had conversations with the girl along the lines that he was sorry and that he was tired. He was beginning to make excuses when someone else started taking matters into their own hands,” said Mr Pulsford.

“What happened next was he was surrounded by a group of people and one particular male was very aggressive towards him with clenched fists saying he ought to be beaten up. He got back into the car and drove off.

“He is a man of some age and wasn’t going to be possibly assaulted. He accepts that he had a duty to report it to the police as soon as is reasonably practical and he didn’t do that.”

The court heard he had seven points already on his licence, and his car was off the road due to needing a new clutch.

Sentencing him, chairman of the bench Linda Raine said: “For the offence of driving without due care and attention you will receive a fine of £65. For failing to report the incident you will pay £125 and your licence will be endorsed with five points. That will take you up to the 12 which means we have to disqualify you for six months from today.

“You will also pay £85 court costs and a £15 victim surcharge. You are disqualified from this moment on and you cannot drive.”