A man dressed only in his pyjamas when seen by police outside his car failed to provide a breath test.

Kenneth Roberts, 53, explained how he had earlier gone in the Landrover to take his dog for a walk.

When they returned to the vehicle it would not start, so he walked home, a court in Mold was told.

Later in the pub he was warned of the danger of leaving his vehicle and walked back to ensure it was locked.

But he got soaked from the rain and was in the process of changing his overalls, with his pyjamas underneath, when the police arrived.

Roberts told Flintshire Magistrates Court that he did not provide a breath specimen at St Asaph police station on October 28 because he did not think he had done anything wrong.

He admitted failing to provide a breath specimen when suspected of being ‘in charge’ of the Landrover.

Roberts escaped a driving ban following a plea by barrister Owen Edwards, defending, that it would cause him exceptional hardship.

Roberts, of Main Road in Ffynnongroyw, was fined £650 with £85 costs and a £65 surcharge.

Magistrates said they believed it was a deliberate refusal, but they accepted that to ban him would mean the loss of his job.

That would mean the loss of his home and the effect that would have on his wife and his daughter.

His father-in-law and his sister also relied upon him being able to drive.

Magistrates said they accepted there was no suggestion that he intended to drive and the fact that the Landrover would not start at the time had influenced their decision.