Might have got me the sack if I had not

…done 99% as per the book.
On the face of it I simply reversed into a stationary car. My fault, end of.

Here’s what really happened…

A lovely sunny, clear, dry morning in Kingston upon Thames. A beautiful, wide, suburban road with detached houses on both sides. Hardly any traffic at all, mebbe 2 cars a minute. I have one of JLs new fleet, excellent vehicle, lovely gearbox, all around cameras, including rear facing.

Parked outside a clients house about 10 feet forward of his driveway, a WIDE, enticing, driveway. No lamposts, roadsigns, or trees to bother me.
Me and my mate Shaun got out to go inspect the goods we had to pick up and see what the score was regarding access to and from the house. we had to take two sofas out and put two sofas in, one of each was a sofabed, a heavy bugger.

.After weighing it up and asking if the client was ok with me reversing onto the drive( They were) I decided to do just that. Those sofa beds were heavy sods and I like to get off the street if at all possible, just in case.
After another walk around and a study of the corner, the entrance, the angle, the length of the driveway, hopped into the cab.
Started the engine, both mirrors, rear cam, looked at Shaun to get the ok, mirrors and cam again, moved backwards at a steady 1-2 MPH.
Mirrors, cam, all still COMPLETELY clear.
Mirrors, cam, NOW I look into my left mirror to peg where I need to start to turn my wheel to start the turn in.
It was at this moment…the lorry stopped moving. No noise, no crunch, or clink, just kinda …stopped.

“That’s weird” I thought. Checked right hand mirror, nothing. Checked left hand mirror, nothing, checked rear cam…and what’s that? A frikkin CAR?? UP ME ■■■■■? How tf did that get there■■?

Hopped out, walked around the back. and yep, there’s a car. This car had driven up behind me, after turning the corner onto the street about 20 yards further back, and driven in my blind spot to a point about 3 feet from my underun and stopped there.
The driver said that she wanted to drive into the driveway I was driving past, the one forward of the one I was aiming for, if that makes sense?

SO she ignored the reversing lights, the reversing hooter, and the hazard lights which I always add to a reverse. And then just…stopped 3 feet away. She made no effort to reverse back, she says she was beeping her horn but she wasn’t, I had three witnesses to that.
So on the face of it I hit a stationary vehicle while I was reversing.

Damage to me, one cracked lens, even the bulb still worked. Hers, ding on the bonnet. She drove it away so nothing major there.

Managers interview the next day I got told it was a 50/50 blame officially but there would be absolutely minimal blame attached to me. Means nothing though, it’s in the file now as 50 50 innit.
The 1%? I could have positioned my banksman better apparently.

TN:CSI comments?

You’ve got mirrors and reversing camera yet you still managed to reverse into a stationary car?? Did you have your eyes closed?

Roymondo:
You’ve got mirrors and reversing camera yet you still managed to reverse into a stationary car?? Did you have your eyes closed?

And a banksman!
Just a short 2 minute snooze…

I WAS WONDERING WHY THE DRIVERS MATE WAS NOT OUTSIDE GUIDING YOU

He was outside, trying to wave off the driver of the car. I know, he should have been telling me to stop but he’s not a driver.
And, tbh, if I needed guiding on that manoeuvre I really should hang up the keys and walk away.

steviespain:
He was outside, trying to wave off the driver of the car. I know, he should have been telling me to stop but he’s not a driver.
And, tbh, if I needed guiding on that manoeuvre I really should hang up the keys and walk away.

But you reversed into a car so obviously did need guidance.

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Fair point, and I fully admit that at the start, but there are mitigating circumstances in my feeble defence, no?

steviespain:
Fair point, and I fully admit that at the start, but there are mitigating circumstances in my feeble defence, no?

To be fair your mate is the one that let you down in my opinion, regardless of whether he drives or not he should have alerted you. Still no-one hurt so all is good really.

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Banksman is not a driver but is that needed to think my mates truck is reversing at that car I should stop him?

I think I would have made him walk back

I think he realised thathe could have been better positioned, he was a bit quiet for the next couple of hours. He was more bothered by it than I was, I had to give him the “No kittens or orphans” speech after 2 hours of introspection
Minimal damage, no-one hurt, just my pride, but still, I reversed into a stationary car, what a plonker.

steviespain:
I think he realised thathe could have been better positioned, he was a bit quiet for the next couple of hours. He was more bothered by it than I was, I had to give him the “No kittens or orphans” speech after 2 hours of introspection
Minimal damage, no-one hurt, just my pride, but still, I reversed into a stationary car, what a plonker.

blame your banksman.

He shouldve shouted to you to stop.

Re: Days like these
Postby steviespain » Tue Oct 09, 2018 8:23 pm

idrive wrote:
Learned 2 lessons…

1. Always check your load
   2) Don’t post mistakes on here

Hahahah, good one

DF40:
Re: Days like these
Postby steviespain » Tue Oct 09, 2018 8:23 pm

idrive wrote:
Learned 2 lessons…

1. Always check your load
   2) Don’t post mistakes on here

Hahahah, good one

Yess, but I didn’t say I wouldn’t

Re-reading that thread I guess you’re the same as me, if it’s your fault you hold your hand up and learn from it.
If anything either I, or you, posted, helps anyone in their jobs…it’s a win

Honesty & holding your hands up when you (zb) up, is the only way. Too many are to quick to blame others.

“The man who never made a mistake never made anything”

Stories like this actually make the threads interesting so well done.

All the best. Onwards & upwards

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With a banksman, if he stops guiding you back, goes out of your view or whatever else then surely you stop? You say he was trying to get the car to move, could you not see he had been distracted by something? That would have been my warning to stop and check with him if it was ok to continue?

Lack of communication id put it down to

Cheers DF, same to you bud.

Well, Stussy, you’re absolutely right If I had been actually using him as a banksman.
However ( ), this reverse was SO easy. Sunny day, dry road, mebbe 2 cars a minute coming along, wide road, wide driveway to go into, no trees, lampposts, or signs in the way. The sort of reverse you get on your first day as a car driver when you’re learning. Sammy could have done it in a HIAB truck with no accidents
My mate was stood with the clients just up the drive. When he, and the clients, saw what this car was intending they all started shouting and waving and moving down the drive to the road. Too late.
No, you can take all the precautions you think are necessary, and I did, and then some numbskull comes along and does the unexpected, i.e. parked, in the blind spot, 3 feet behind a reversing wagon. I mean, would you expect that?
Still, and I don’t want to labour this point it’s my fault. Lesson learnt.
When reversing, get your guy out. No, that is not a euphemism

From what you’ve written I’d say the lesson to be learned is that complacency is your worst enemy.

Being on a quiet road with an easy reverse and the sun shining isn’t going to stop some fool stopping behind a reversing vehicle, you should have had your colleague in the road stopping any traffic from getting anywhere near you.

Credit to Shaun for feeling bad about it though, a lot of drivers mates would have just shrugged their shoulders laughed and blamed the driver.

Sent from my mobile.

Hardly complacent, mate.
even on this SO simple manoeuvre I’d got out, weighed it it up, checked all the angles, got back in, go backwards slowly, mirrors mirrors mirrors, clunk, oh ffs!
That’s not complacent at all.
Numbskull driver came along and parked a car in the blindspot. You cannot legislate for every eventuality. This is a shining example of what you cannot expect on a day to day basis, I.E. an idiot driver.

steviespain:
Numbskull driver came along and parked a car in the blindspot. You cannot legislate for every eventuality. This is a shining example of what you cannot expect on a day to day basis, I.E. an idiot driver.

That’s what I meant, if you’d had your colleague stopping the traffic the foolish car driver wouldn’t have got through.

It’s easy to be wise after the event but if you’ve got a drivers mate you might as well get him/her to stop traffic while you reverse.

All these drivers saying they can’t believe you reversing into a stationary car. It’s one of my pet hates when cars drive round me when I reverse. All she had to do was wait 10 seconds.

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