Police in Nottinghamshire were left baffled when they pulled over an elderly man and learned he had been driving without a licence for 72 years.
The man, who is in his 80s, was finally caught when police stopped him next to a Tesco Extra store in Bulwell, Nottinghamshire on Wednesday, January 26.
He was described as being 'very unsteady on his feet' and 'hard of hearing' in a post about the incident shared by Nottinghamshire Police, who said the encounter took place while the 'City North OP Reacher team' were patrolling in Sherwood and Carrington.
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Officers pulled over the man's blue Mini and approached the driver, who was born in 1938, with the post explaining that the elderly man then 'coughed that he had been driving with no licence and no insurance, since he was 12 (yes TWELVE) years old.....and somehow had managed to never be stopped by the police. We'll let you do the maths!!'
Despite not being old enough to legally drive a car at the time, the man was not caught on his first outings in the vehicle, and after he passed legal age he continued to go unnoticed for decades.
Compulsory testing was established for all drivers in June 1935, meaning the man should legally have taken a test, but it seems his careful driving managed to prevent police from looking his way.
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Nottinghamshire Police explained, 'Thankfully he had never had an accident, caused anyone an injury, and never made anyone lose out financially, by hitting them whilst uninsured!'
The police department went on to stress that an increased number of Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras in Nottingham means drivers are 'likely to hit a camera' even on short trips, adding, 'so make sure your documents are in order.....because it will catch up with you.....one day.....'
Many social media users expressed disbelief that the man had managed to go undetected for so many years, while others questioned if he'd managed to secure a record by driving for seven decades without a licence.
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The force said they were 'gentle' with the driver, though stressed that lack of hearing, unsteadiness and poor reactions meant that he was 'potentially not safe driving now, even if he was 'road legal''.
The UK government explains that anyone driving a car or riding a motorcycle must get a driving licence, register, insure and tax the vehicle, and get an MOT before operating the vehicle.
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Emily Brown