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Driver hits police car 31 times in 'frighteningly stupid' bid to dodge paying Jaguar finance

Nathan Owen, 33, told 999 call handlers his car was accelerating on its own, triggering a huge police response that saw motorways closed - but was later discovered to have faked the incident

[Dashcam footage shows the driver racing down a busy motorway after claiming his car was out of control]

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Dashcam footage shows the driver racing down a busy motorway after claiming his car was out of control(Image: Merseyside Police)

Bizarre new footage shows the moment a man slams into the back of a police car after faking an emergency to try and have his car written off.

Nathan Owen, 33, collided with a police car 31 times after he phoned emergency services to tell them his electric Jaguar was accelerating on its own and he could not stop, Liverpool Crown Court heard on Monday.

He drove at speeds of up to 86mph on the M58, M57 and M62 in Merseyside for about 35 minutes, over a distance of about 38 miles, during the incident on March 6, 2024.

It triggered a significant police response as officers tried to stop what they were told was a runaway vehicle - but investigations later showed there was nothing wrong with the car, and that Owen was in full control the entire time.

He went on to plead guilty to dangerous driving and two counts of fraud, and sentenced to four years and three months in prison on Monday.

Sentencing him, Judge Ian Unsworth KC said: You set in train a course of conduct which caused a significant police traffic operation to be deployed, undoubted alarm to the public and very substantial loss and disruption to others.

The judge said police officers placed themselves in danger because they believed they were dealing with a genuine emergency.

He added: You, meanwhile, sought to profit from a lie.

[Nathan Owen, 33, was sentenced to four years and three months in prison ]

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Nathan Owen, 33, was sentenced to four years and three months in prison (Image: Merseyside Police)

Eric Lamb, prosecuting, said Owen, of Prestatyn, North Wales, had entered into a finance agreement in September 2023 for the Jaguar I-Pace.

He ran into financial difficulties and was in arrears with CA Auto Finance by March the following year with about 5,000 left to pay, the court heard.

On the day of the incident, he called loan company Plata to ask if he would be able to borrow more on top of the 3,000 he had already loaned from them, but was told he could not.

Five minutes later, shortly after 2pm, he called 999 claiming his car would not brake and he had no control over the vehicle, which he said was accelerating.

Mr Lamb said: In fact, his car was stationary at the time of that call.

[He was found to have faked the incident to have the car written off]

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He was found to have faked the incident to have the car written off(Image: Merseyside Police)

Police responded and the car, which was then travelling at speeds of up to 86mph, had to be boxed off by emergency service vehicles to keep other road users safe before it came to a stop on the M62 near Warrington, Cheshire.

However, investigations found there was no fault with the car, the court heard.

Mr Lamb said: He had fabricated the events in order to enable him to get rid of the vehicle.

He had full control of the vehicle and with full control of the vehicle he travelled at excessive and extreme speeds.

Motorways had to be closed as a result of the incident, the court heard.

Footage of the police pursuit was played in court along with the audio from his 999 call, in which he was heard telling an operator he was shaking and the car had gone crazy.

When the car was eventually brought to a stop, the brake lights could be seen turning on. Owen contacted the finance company 40 minutes after the incident.

He was later paid 300 by The Sun and 500 by the Daily Mail for his story, the court heard.

In a statement, Murray Paul, from Jaguar Land Rover UK, said the firm had spent an extra 50 million in marketing to try and counter the publicity from the false allegations, which they said generated 180 pieces of adverse coverage.

Daniel Travers, defending, said Owens actions were frighteningly stupid.

He said Owen, who had no previous convictions and came from a successful, stable family, had been described by his father as a Walter Mitty character who lives in a fantasy world.

He added: He had grand ideas and things just went wrong.

Owen pleaded guilty to dangerous driving and two counts of fraud in June. He was banned from driving for a period of five years after his release from custody.

Speaking after the sentencing, Merseyside Police's Detective Constable Michael Doyle said: It was clear from our investigations that he was in full control of his vehicle throughout the duration of the incident.

By his own admission there were workers on the hard shoulder of the motorway and he clearly put them and other road users in danger with his reckless actions.

A charge of causing a public nuisance was ordered to lie on the file.

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