‘I’m just really grateful I didn’t injure anyone else,’ Ryan Sims told us outside court
05:00, 05 Jul 2026
Ryan Sims, speaking outside Newport magistrates’ court, said he was grateful he did not injure anyone else(Image: Conor Gogarty)
A man faces the task of rebuilding his life after a “ridiculous” decision to get behind the wheel following a work booze-up. Ryan Sims was dumped by his partner and had to move back in with his parents as a consequence of drink-driving into a traffic island, Newport magistrates’ court heard.
Prosecutor Jemma Guy said police were called on January 22 to the A476 at Crosskeys, Caerphilly county, where a Ford Focus had crashed into a “keep left” sign and a concrete island in the middle of the road. Police approached the car and its driver identified himself as 31-year-old Sims.
“He was complaining about a cut to his head but when asked if he required an ambulance he said no,” Ms Guy told the court.
The authorities decided Sims should be taken to hospital because of his head injury from airbags being deployed. While in Cwmbran’s Grange hospital he gave a blood sample which showed 123mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood. The legal limit is 80mg.
Wearing a navy slim-fit M&S suit in the dock, Sims was asked by the court clerk to take his hands out of his pockets at the start of the hearing. He then pleaded guilty to drink-driving.
His solicitor Rod Young said: “At the time the defendant was working for a recruitment agency in Newport and living in Blackwood. On the day in question, the office shut early so he and a few fellow employees went for a few drinks.
“Subsequently, at around 4.30pm, he went back to the car thinking he was fit to drive home. The weather was poor, and it was January so it was dark.
“As he was driving along the dual carriageway his nearside wheel struck a raised kerb near the central reservation, causing him to lose control of the car temporarily. He contacted police himself and stayed with the vehicle until police arrived.
“This has had a dramatic effect on his life already. It was the beginning of the end in terms of his relationship. When he got home his partner was none too pleased, having not known where he was or what had happened.”
After the breakup Sims moved back in with his parents and switched jobs so he could work nearer their home in South Gloucestershire, finding employment at the BRC recruitment agency in Bristol.
“He is not going to lose his job as a result of the incident,” said Mr Young. “They were aware of the impending court proceedings when they hired him, but it will certainly restrict his progression, and it is an extreme inconvenience as he relies solely on public transport to get to and from work.”
Sims, of Robel Avenue in Frampton Cotterell, earns around £2,000 a month of which he pays his parents £500 for board and lodging. He had one previous conviction, a 2013 motoring offence.
Handing down the sentence District Judge Sophie Toms said: “You are very fortunate you didn’t hurt, maim or kill anyone after taking the ridiculous decision to get behind the wheel having consumed alcohol.
“It is sensible to wait 12 to 24 hours after consuming alcohol. There is no rule that you can have one or two pints and be free of alcohol and fit to drive.”
The judge imposed an 18-month driving ban, £500 fine, £200 victim services surcharge and £85 prosecution costs. Speaking outside court following the hearing, Sims told WalesOnline it was a wake-up call and that he was “just really grateful I didn’t injure anyone else”.
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