Wife's 300-mile dash beats AA man

Kevin Winstanley's wife drove 300 miles with a spare key

A motorist stranded in the Yorkshire Dales was saved by his wife who drove 300 miles and arrived before an AA patrol could solve the problem.

Kevin Winstanley, 37, was shocked to find his wife Jacqueline had driven from their home in Southampton and reached him before a recovery truck.

He had been walking on the Pennine Way but locked his keys in the boot of his Audi A8.

A patrol did attend but could not open the boot. The AA is investigating

Mr Winstanley had been hiking through the Dales with a friend on 15 September when he accidentally locked the car keys in his car boot.

After calling the AA he had to wait for 10 hours inside the car on a cold night with the doors unlocked just outside the village of Thwaite, near Muker in Swaledale.

His wife arrived at 0500 BST on Sunday morning [16 September] with a spare set of keys.

I must have looked a right state Stranded motorist Kevin Winstanley

Mr Winstanley said: "I just couldn't believe it when I saw her and realised she had made it all the way from Southampton.

"The impression I got was that there were no patrols available from the AA on that Saturday night.

"When Jacqui arrived it was the last thing in the world I expected to see. It was freezing cold and my contact lenses had welded to my eyes because I'd been sleeping in them.

"I must have looked a right state."

Mr Winstlanley said one patrol did arrive three hours after the initial call, but could not get the boot open.

An AA spokesman said: "We take member complaints very seriously and are looking into this as a priority.

"We will contact Mr Winstanley as soon as we have established the facts."