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Prince Philip surrenders driver's license weeks after car accident

“After careful consideration The Duke of Edinburgh has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence,” Buckingham Palace announced.
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Queen Elizabeth II’s husband, Prince Philip, has voluntarily surrendered his driver's license weeks after getting into a car accident.

Buckingham Palace announced the decision in a statement released on Saturday.

“After careful consideration The Duke of Edinburgh has taken the decision to voluntarily surrender his driving licence,” the statement read.

Prince Philip, 97, was involved in an accident while driving last month in England.

The accident happened close to the Sandringham Estate, which is about 115 miles northeast of London, on the afternoon of Jan. 17.

Witnesses told the BBC Philip appeared “very shocked” and shaken after the collision, which caused the Land Rover he was driving to overturn, according to The Associated Press.

Norfolk Police gave both Philip and the driver of the other vehicle mandatory breathalyzer tests, both of which came back negative for alcohol.

“The male driver of the Land Rover was uninjured. The female driver of the Kia suffered cuts while the female passenger sustained an arm injury, both requiring hospital treatment,” the police force said in a state.

The prince wrote a letter apologizing to the woman who suffered a broken arm.

The woman, Emma Fairweather, told the U.K.'s Sunday Mirror newspaper that Philip giving up his license is "the right thing to do. Undoubtedly the roads will be safer now."

Prosecutors say they will consider Philip's decision as they decide whether to charge him in the crash.

Philip formally retired from public life in 2017, and Queen Elizabeth II, 92, has also scaled back her workload in recent years. The two were married at Westminster Abbey on Nov. 20, 1947.