A lorry driver drove down the wrong side of a road for 30 miles, hit a family car then carried on oblivious to the damage he had caused.

The body of the truck bent on to the wheel as John McCormack kept travelling up the A9 until he was finally stopped by police.

Perth Sheriff Court heard McCormack, 46, could offer no reason why he drove on the wrong side of the A9 for 30 miles between Blair Atholl and Perth.

Fiscal depute Stuart Richardson said motorists were driving north near the House of Bruar shopping complex when they saw McCormack heading straight for them.

He said: "To their horror they saw the lorry coming south. He was on the wrong side of the road. They managed to get off the road on to the verge.

"The lorry missed them but unfortunately it continued on and a couple with three children in their car weren't so lucky. He hit the offside of their car and scraped along it.

"One might have hoped that would bring this to an end. The impact was forcible and bent the truck on to the wheel. Police managed to pull over the lorry further down the A9. This had been going on for quite a few miles."

McCormack, of Doon Place, Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire, admitted driving dangerously on the wrong side of the road on April 11 last year.

He admitted failing to stop after an accident and driving a vehicle which posed a danger because of the state it was in. A charge relating to cannabis was dropped by the Crown.

Solicitor David Holmes, defending, said medical investigations had taken place and McCormack decided to stop driving in the wake of the incident.

Sheriff Fiona Tait deferred sentence for clarification of the medical condition and imposed an interim driving ban on McCormack.