A CARE worker had been drinking hours before she was caught up in a fatal incident.
Vivian Archer could not stop as her car approached a stricken motorcyclist, lying in the road having fallen off his bike, Redhill magistrates heard.
The biker in his 50s became trapped under Archer's car in Old Farleigh Road, Warlingham, at around 8am on January 5, and died the same day.
Archer, 54, of Shelton Avenue, Warlingham, pleaded guilty on Friday to drink-driving.
Prosecutor Johnson Shittu said: "The motorbike had overtaken her and then it collapsed on the road on its nearside.
"Mrs Archer's vehicle was unable to stop before colliding with the motorcylist.
"She has not been charged with causing death by dangerous driving."
The prosecutor said Archer failed a roadside breath test and was subsequently found to have 83 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood – the legal limit is 80.
Jeremy Boots, defending, said: "It was accepted that the accident was in no way Mrs Archer's fault.
"She was on her way to work as a care assistant after drinking the night before. Since this incident the fatality has had a huge affect on her emotionally.
"She lost her father in March this year and her best friend died of cancer.
"This is the final straw for her.
"Her job could be in jeopardy over this, primarily because she was on her way to work at the time of the incident."
Archer was disqualified from driving for a year, which will be reduced to nine months if she takes a drink-drive rehabilitation course.
She was also fined £200 and ordered to pay £87 costs and a £20 victim surcharge.
Police, paramedics and an air ambulance crew were called to the collision.
The road was closed for several hours while police accident investigators examined the scene. Several floral bouquets lay near the collision spot in the aftermath.
