A cyclist in North Yorkshire who was almost knocked off his bike by an inattentive driver got his own back on the motorist - by applying the handbrake to the caravan his vehicle was towing, then sitting back and watching what happened.

Scarborough fish-and-chip shop worker Ken Lofts, said he was clipped by the caravan as the motorist approached a set of traffic lights in Scarborough town centre last Monday, reports The Sun.

"It just shows how little attention the driver was paying that firstly he didn’t notice hitting me, and secondly he didn’t notice me put his handbrake on," he said.

“I didn’t come off the bike completely but he bumped me off the saddle and I had to get my feet down to stop myself falling over.

“He clipped me on the arm with the front of the caravan but there was no acknowledgement, no apology, nothing. I ended up on the path.

“He was slowing down for the traffic lights and I was in front of him. As a cyclist there’s always a few close calls but no-one’s ever actually struck me before.

“I was a bit pissed off at the lack of a ‘sorry’ or anything so I thought ‘how can I get him back?’. The handbrake was right there so I pulled it up and off I went.”

The newspaper's website has footage (also posted to YouTube here) showing the front wheels of the Vauxhall Vectra spinning as the motorist attempted to pull away from the traffic lights.

Mr Lofts, meanwhile, was watching from nearby.

“The driver could have been there all day and not realised what was going on," he said.

“It was only because two people were crossing the road and spotted him not moving.

“A passenger got out and at one point all three of them were scratching their heads trying to figure out the problem.

“Eventually they worked it out but in that time the lights changed about five times.

“I think it was a combination of their confusion, the wet surface, the condition of the road – I never expected the wheels to spin and squeal for that long.

“I was in a good mood before that and I suppose it was a bit mischievous. I just thought ‘sod it’. I did have a good laugh when they tried to push the caravan," he added.

“People said I put them in danger but if they were the ones who put me in danger, so this was just a bit of revenge for that.”