Silkmen chief in insurance row keeps licence
THE boss of Macclesfield Town FC has narrowly avoided losing his driving licence after a dispute with his car insurer.
Robert Heys, general manager of the club, was caught driving his Mercedes without an insurance while in Accrington on July 20.
He was hauled in front of magistrates in Blackburn where he admitted driving without insurance.
Heys was hit with £448 in fines and costs and six penalty points.
Under the totting up principle Heys, of Solly Avenue, Birkenhead, accumulated 12 points on his licence which prompts an automatic ban.
But after appealing to magistrates that the loss of driving licence would have a ‘detrimental effect on his daughter’, Heys was allowed to keep his licence.
In court documents magistrates said there had been a ‘genuine misunderstanding’ between Heys and his insurer.
Speaking after the sentence Heys said: “It was a misunderstanding due to a dispute with the insurance company, but the fact is that I wasn’t covered, and I fully accepted the endorsement and fine.
“I had points on my license already, so that took me to twelve points, which meant my license could have been suspended and I had to attend the magistrates court.
“I live on the Wirral, work in Macclesfield and pick my daughter up twice a week in Accrington, something that I wouldn’t have been able to continue using public transport, so I am very grateful that I was allowed to continue driving.
“The points on my license is now back under twelve, as some have come off, but I shall be ensuring that I stay on the right side of the law going forward.”
Heys was appointed general manager at the end of the 2015/16 season.
He joined the Silkmen from Accrington Stanley, where he held a similar role for 15 years.
During his time with Accrington, Heys played a part in guiding the parttime non-league football to an established Football League side.
However his time at the club did feature some controversy. He served two spells at Accrington Stanley interrupted in August 2013 when he was banned from all football activity for 21 months by the Football Association (FA) after admitting several breaches of the FA’s betting rules.