Horror as driver reverses into man after failing to spot him - despite hi-vis jacket

Nimesh Odedra, 43, struck a man while reversing his car at a petrol station - with the 43-year-old pleading guilty to careless driving at Leicester Magistrates' Court on Wednesday

A driver who was reversing his car hit a man as he failed to spot him even though the victim was wearing a hi-vis jacket.

Nimesh Odedra, 43, had been reversing his Ford Puma at the Desford Crossroads service station in Leicester when the incident happened. The court heard that after hitting the man, the married father-of-two blamed him for jumping onto his car deliberately.

On Wednesday, Odedra pleaded guilty to careless driving at Leicester Magistrates' Court. Prosecutor Sally Bedford said the incident happened at the petrol station between Leicester and Hinckley at about 1.45pm on March 5. She played the CCTV footage from the service station which showed the man walking across the forecourt.

She said: "He filled up his minibus, went to pay and was walking back to his vehicle. The defendant pulled onto the forecourt and embarked on a reverse manoeuvre to refuel. The man couldn't have been more visible. He was wearing a hi-vis top and walking at a steady pace.

"The defendant collided with him and he was knocked to the floor. There's a confrontation where the defendant accuses him of of jumping onto his car. It was clearly quite a knock. He had a bump to the back of his head and it was sore for quite a few weeks afterwards."

Mike Diez, representing Odedra, of Hinckey Road, Leicester Forest East, said his client had looked in his mirrors but failed to spot the man, reported Leicestershire Live. He said: "He believes the male was possibly in his blind spot. He fully accepts there must have been a momentary lapse of concentration."

He said Odedra was a heat pump consultant, working two jobs to support his family, which included two children aged 10 and six. He said Odedra already had points on his licence and that if the conviction led to six more points he would lose it and be unable to work.

The magistrates' gave him five points and the chair of the bench, Lee Cocozza, said the injuries to the man could easily have been more serious. He said: "This gentleman's injuries could have been considerably worse but we don't convict people based on what could have happened. So you're not going to lose your licence. But even if you get caught speeding now, there'll be no question about it." Odedra was also fined £461 and ordered to pay £85 court costs and a £184 victim surcharge.