A sports car owner who crashed into a bollard lied to police that his car was stolen to get an insurance payout.

James Burnett, 32, of Hercules Way, Peterborough, reported his £34,000 Audi S3 as missing around 1pm on April 8 last year.

He initially claimed it was stolen from his home overnight as the keys were left in the vehicle.

The damaged car was later found by officers on the A605 near Oundle, but investigations found the mobile phone Burnett had used to call police had been near to where the car was discovered.

It was then Burnett admitted he had lost control crashed it into a bollard while trying to retrieve a parcel that had fallen off a seat.

He tried to claim to police the £34,000 vehicle had been stolen.

He claimed he was worried the insurance company wouldn’t pay out after the crash so walked home and reported the theft instead.

At Peterborough Crown Court On Wednesday (March 20) Burnett pleaded guilty to making a false allegation of theft and was given a 20-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to carry out 140 hours of unpaid work.

PC Martin George, investigating, said: “Burnett thought he could pull the wool over our eyes and his insurer’s, but thankfully he did not succeed. His account of the events that night was utterly ridiculous and his lies soon unravelled.

“I’m glad his deception was uncovered and hope this serves as a lesson to anyone who thinks they can cheat the system for their own financial gain. Honesty is the best policy.”