Lanzini avoids ban despite being caught driving without UK licence or insurance

Manuel Lanzini has avoided a driving ban but has been fined £1,735 and hit with a six-point penalty after being caught behind the wheel without a UK license or insurance.

The West Ham playmaker, 29, was stopped by the police on January 27 while driving his £73,000 Porsche in Aldgate, London. He gave officers an Argentinian license and knew he needed a UK equivalent but claimed it had been delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Lanzini pleaded guilty at Bromley magistrates court in March, just days before he was involved in a serious car crash. In that incident, he was not behind the wheel and was able to walk away from the wreckage relatively unscathed.

On Tuesday, April 12, Lanzini admitted to having no UK license or insurance at the City of London magistrates court. He used the Single Justice Procedure, which allows those accused of minor offences to plea remotely, for the hearing.

"At 15:14 on Thursday, January 27 this year, a Porsche was stopped by police in Aldgate," Kate Hogarth, who was prosecuting for the City of London Police, told the court at Tuesday's hearing. "The driver was identified as this defendant.

"He produced an Argentinian driving licence and said he had been in the UK for four or five years. The defendant said he knew he should have a licence, but the pandemic had delayed the process of getting one."

Lanzini's lawyer Mark Haslam told the court: "The defendant has an Argentinian driving licence which is still a valid document on the face of it. However, he has to exchange that document with a British licence if he has been in the UK for a certain amount of time.

"He should, as he freely admitted to the officer, taken steps to exchange his licence for a British one. The court will be aware that the DVLA has not covered itself in glory during the pandemic and many people put off their application for a licence.

"When he was stopped by the officer he was frank with them and accepted that was the position. Because he did not have a licence he was not capable of being covered by the insurance. On this occasion, his wife had been taken ill.

"He took the decision to drive a very short distance to the pharmacy to get medication for her. It was a very short journey and an error of judgement. This was a heat of the moment decision; he should have taken a taxi or walked but chose to make the journey himself.

"It was a very short distance and he has pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity. He does not need to complete a means form. He is a wealthy man, but I am not going to give the bench a clue as to how wealthy."

Magistrate Dr Lynne Gailey ordered Lanzini to pay a £1,500 fine, £85 court costs and a £150 victim surcharge. Six points were added to his licence. Lanzini was previously banned from driving in August 2020 after racking up 12 points on his license for speeding, the court was told on Tuesday.