A 20-year-old Australian loses his licence after being pulled over drunk and driving a chilly bin. But he's not the first...

A Melbourne apprentice has lost his wheels - and been slapped with a large fine - after being busted driving a motorised Esky (chilly bin in New Zealand).

P-plater Josh Griffiths, of Kilsyth, may have thought he had a licence to chill. However, a neighbour spotted the 20-year-old taking his cooler for a spin in Mooroolbark about 11pm on Saturday.

As the video above shows, Griffiths is not the first chilly bin motorist to get into trouble with the law.

FACEBOOK Josh Griffiths and his motorised Esky (chilly bin).

Police didn't have to mount a high-speed chase to catch Griffiths and his slow-moving "vehicle".

READ MORE:

* Marlborough man Dean Page converts chilly bin into hybrid scooter

* Man 'drunk in charge' of motorised chilly bin

* Chilly bin joy ride ends in fine

DEREK FLYNN/STUFF.CO.NZ Blenheim man Dean Page has built himself a ride-on esky (chilly bin) to transport himself around town.

"I just fixed my esky and took it outside, and then about 10 minutes later the police came down the street and got me," he told Ten News on Monday.

After a breath-test recorded a blood alcohol level of 0.041, Griffiths received penalty notices tallying more than A$1100 for drink-driving and operating an unregistered vehicle. The apprentice carpenter has also lost his P-plate licence for three months.

Griffiths said he had been at a mate's place to celebrate a birthday, and had marked the occasion with a few (no doubt well-chilled) beers.

"You know I'm on a little Esky and I'm not drunk at all, I'm not disrupting anyone," he said of the incident.

However, police said his actions were potentially extremely dangerous.

"To have this young man riding around poorly lit streets whilst alcohol affected, with no vehicle lights and not wearing any protective equipment, it's simply a recipe for disaster," Leading Senior Constable Adam Dickenson said.

-FAIRFAX AUSTRALIA and AAP