The owner of a Chinese takeaway who was buying fish in a layby in Skipton was uninsured to drive, a court heard.

Kim Wing Chan was questioned by a police officer next to the former Nicholas Smith’s garage in Gargrave Road.

Chan, 45, had been parked up in his van at just before midnight on July 21 and was in the process of buying fresh fish, but a police check revealed he was not insured to drive his Vauxhall Combo.

Skipton magistrates heard that Chan, who admitted using a vehicle without insurance, believed his wife had insured the van, but that she had failed to do so.

He also already had six points on his licence, putting him at risk of having a driving ban under the totting-up procedure.

Chan, of Wentworth Crescent, Harrogate, was banned for six months and fined £200. He was ordered to pay £45 costs and a £15 victims surcharge.

He also admitted failing to produce his driving licence but there was no separate penalty.