Alan Hamilton
Win a trip to the Ice Hotel in Lapland
SHEEPY MAGNA A woman wrote off her £96,000 Mercedes-Benz and nearly drowned when she followed the instructions of her onboard satellite navigation device into a river.
Had she been looking where she was going she might have noticed that the track leading to the River Sense at Sheepy Magna, Leicestershire, was signposted as being unsuitable for motor vehicles. The woman, who identified herself as Hayley, 28, from London, drove her SL500 into the river where it was swept 200m downstream, bouncing from bank to bank. Alice Clark, 24, a stables owner, was in a field when she saw the car enter the water. Ms Clark said the driver tried to smash the windows with her feet before they opened — allowing her to escape on to the roof. Ms Clark waded into the river and pulled the driver to the bank.
Industry sectors news at a glance. Interactive heatmap, video and podcast
The inside track on current trends in the charity, not for profit and social enterprise sectors
Read our exclusive 100 Years of Fleming and Bond interactive timeline, packed with original Times articles and reviews
Everything the Business Traveller needs to know to make a better trip
Shortcuts to help you find sections and articles
05/2005
£13,500
08/2008
£109,950
2005 / 55
£59,500
Great car insurance deals online
£Excellent+ executive benefits
Torres and Partners
London
£49,229 - £62,035 pro rata
Charity Commission
London/Liverpool/Taunton
Alstom Power
Europe
Six Figure
Rolls Royce
Midlands/Europe
From £89,950
Special Offers now available
At the new sophisticated
Encore Las Vegas Resort!
Cruise the Islands of Hawaii - Pride of America
List your property with two leading travel websites
Great travel insurance deals online
Contact our advertising team for advertising and sponsorship in Times Online, The Times and The Sunday Times, or place your advertisement.
Times Online Services: Dating | Jobs | Property Search | Used Cars | Holidays | Births, Marriages, Deaths
News International associated websites: Globrix | Property Finder | Milkround
Copyright 2008 Times Newspapers Ltd.
This service is provided on Times Newspapers' standard Terms and Conditions. Please read our Privacy Policy.To inquire about a licence to reproduce material from Times Online, The Times or The Sunday Times, click here.This website is published by a member of the News International Group. News International Limited, 1 Virginia St, London E98 1XY, is the holding company for the News International group and is registered in England No 81701. VAT number GB 243 8054 69.
If this happened in the US, I wouldn't be surprised if she sued Mercedes-Benz, and won.
Todd, Springfield, Oregon, USA
no doubt putting on her makeup in the rear view mirror and talking on her mobile at the time
chris fear, bristol, UK
How can someone who cant read a roadsign, get to own a £96,000 motor car?
I sometimes see very poor driving by people with very exspensive cars.
kem, shrewsbury , shropshire
Just shows what happens when technology takes over from common sense.
Mike, St. Louis, USA
woman drivers. need i say more.
Arther, Bristol, UK
Was she wearing blinkers? If she was one of the runners at Chelthenham, she would not have ended up in a river!
V Tan, London, London
An example of relying on technology overcoming common sense.
Mike, St. Louis, USA
Will she will be charged with driving without due care and attention?
Michael Spencer, York,
It just goes to show that there is no correlation between the value of a car and the IQ of its driver.
Quin, Camberley, England
More money than sense?
John Kenton-Page, Eastbourne,