Australian pop star Daniel Merriweather checked into rehab to sober up in the aftermath of a nasty crash which led to a drink-driving conviction.

The singer was banned from the road for 14 months this week (beg22Apr13) after pleading guilty to charges of drink-driving, careless driving and failing to stop at the scene of an accident stemming from an incident in Melbourne in December (12).

Merriweather has now revealed the accident prompted him to enrol in rehab in a bid to turn his life around.

He tells the Sydney Daily Telegraph, "The car accident was a catalyst for some serious changes in my personal life. I decided to check myself into rehab and live completely sober. It's the best thing I ever did. This is how I want to live my life now. I now feel very strongly about letting people know how destructive alcohol and drug abuse can be. There is a light at the end of the tunnel if you feel these things are affecting your life in a negative way.

"I've had close friends die from alcohol and other substances and other friends go down very dark roads. I was well and truly on that road and it took this accident to shake some sense into me... I made a really bad decision to drive and feel awful about the whole thing. I'm just so lucky that no one was hurt in the accident."

The star insists he has been sober for more than two months and is already feeling the benefits. He adds, "With the help of family and my close friends, I was able to rid myself of these things... It's still early days, but the rewards of sobriety are already being felt. This is a new chapter in my life and I've never felt better."