Make Way for the 7 Worst Celebrity Drivers

Celebrity, DUI, News

Blue speeding carWhen regular people get into fender-benders, nobody finds out about it–apart from close friends and family, the local repair shop, and their insurance company. Celebrities, however, are constantly scrutinized; the public wants to know everything about them, including how they drive. If a celeb hits something or someone, all the better for the paparazzi, because nothing makes us feel better about ourselves than photographs of the rich and famous running amok in the kinds of luxury autos most of us can only dream of.

Like any other group of people, some celebrities are more prone to driving-related mishaps than others. In fact, some are so bad on the road that they should probably be kept off it for good. Here are the seven worst celebrity drivers:

Amanda Bynes

Former Nickelodeon star Amanda Bynes is the poster girl for dysfunctional driving these days. In recent months, she’s had several traffic-related mishaps including a DUI after sideswiping a police car, two hit-and-runs, and was more recently pulled over after being caught driving with a suspended license. Her car has been impounded, which will hopefully keep her off the road, but her family and legal team are reportedly concerned about her mental health, since Bynes herself seems to be unconcerned about her legal problems.

Lindsay Lohan

Speaking of troubled child stars, Lindsay Lohan is right up there with Amanda Bynes in the bad driving department. She was arrested just last month for leaving the scene of an accident after allegedly clipping the knee of a pedestrian while driving her Porsche Cayenne down a parking ramp in NYC. The pedestrian claims she was slurring and smelled of alcohol, which would be unfortunate given Lohan’s ongoing legal issues, which include two DUIs within three months in 2007. She’s also been pulled over after rear-ending a Mustang, hit a stroller after running a red light in her Maserati, hit the manager of a club in Hollywood, and crashed into the back of a dump truck (though, to be fair, she claims to have been the passenger not the driver–though it was her car that was totaled.)

Britney Spears

Britney Spears’ most infamous driving moment occurred in 2006 when she was photographed driving in L.A. with her infant son sitting in her lap instead of in a car seat. But that’s far from the only reason she shouldn’t be allowed behind the wheel. Before being banned from driving with her kids in the car, she was charged with a hit and run, charged with driving without a valid license, ran over someone’s foot, left her car in the middle of the street after getting a flat, and–most spectacularly–she caused a three-car pile-up on the Ventura Freeway after rear-ending the car in front of her.

Mischa Barton

Although her driving exploits seem almost tame compared to Bynes, Lohan, and Spears, actress Mischa Barton is probably paying more than average for auto insurance after several episodes of terrible driving. It all started in 2007, when she got in a fender-bender while driving friend Nicole Richie’s car in L.A. That was forgivable, but less than a month later she ripped the bumper clean off her car after catching it on a parking lot gate. A few months after that incident, she was charged with a DUI when she was spotted failing to use her turn signals and driving in two lanes at once.

Paris Hilton

It’s hard to miss Paris Hilton driving—she owns a bright pink Bentley—but if you see her, you might want to pull over and let her go on by. Like many celebrities, she was caught driving while drunk and was arrested for reckless driving. Her license was suspended, but she was repeatedly caught driving anyway, including once while doing 70 mph in a 35 mph zone, after dark, without headlights.

George Michael

Pop singer George Michael has a history of driving problems. It began in 2006 when he was found slumped over the wheel of his car, and also include a car accident in 2009. A year later, in July of 2010, Michael crashed his car into a storefront in London and was charged with a DUI and drug possession. That was the final straw for the judge, who banned him from driving for six months, fined him $1,725, and sentenced him to four weeks in prison, followed by four weeks of supervision.

Billy Joel

Last but definitely not least, crooner Billy Joel is probably not someone you want to catch a ride with. His bad driving luck started in 1983, when he crashed his motorcycle. He then went on to crash his car in 2002 and again in 2003. Not to be outdone by his previous accidents, he jumped a curb and crashed into a house in 2004 while driving a 1967 Citroen.