Failure to stop at scene of accident

UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUMS THE UK PROFESSIONAL DRIVERS FORUM (INTERACTIVE)
1

Hi all, does anyone know what the penalty for this is please? No it’s not me, but for someone who hit my truck at the end of July.

Road was slippy as it had rained earlier in the day but light was good, going down a country road which had enough room to pass truck and car no problem, several had done it before hand when going to me delivery.

Finished my delivery and as was now empty took it a little steady about 20-25mph allowing for stoppages for other trucks and busses coming etc. But out pops a car going not fast but was making progress, saw me and panicked then hit the anchors. Skidded into the front offside of my unit smashed the step and bumper and stopped about 25 foot past the end of my trailer.

Only hit this part of the unit as he kind of bounced off it a bit. So i stopped, hazards on & wanders down side of the trailer towards the guy with my diary with company address etc… in, you know the usual things when in a collsions. The guy gets out the car and looks quizzacally at me, to which i beckon him to come up. Nope.

He puts his thumb up get in car and drives off :open_mouth: Quite hastily too…

So rings the old bill as 1 he’s driven off from scene of a smack, but mainly 2, who knows if he was drunk, drugs, insured even? and i wasnt prepared to get into the trouble with my boss over it.

They find him 2 hours later, and all checks out, nothing wrong with the car legally and no traces of booze. He claims he thought i put my thumb upto him and he thought it was all ok and drove off!

Are there really people out there like this? Evidentally… anyway, turns out my companys insurance is taking his insurance to court as they fighting over who’s to blame for the initial incident. First time i will have ever been to court if it does go that far, but given i had the old bill turn up to the scene, the lady from the house who heard a bang came out and saw just me there will this all be in good favour for me and the company?

Don’t really want to be taking the blame/points/fine for something that wasn’t my fault, but the real bug bear for me is that he drove off. Just a little nervous about it all really, has anyone been in any similar situations maybe?

Cheers

Stu

2

yes… I was involved in a hit and run 3 months ago.

4am in the morning going to work in my car I was on a main road, travelling 40mph, and approaching a crossroads. notraffic lights at the crossroads, just give way markings on the side roads, so I had priority. Going through crossroads I was smashed in the rear drivers side quarter by a car who thought he would chance the crossroads from the minor side road by not even attempting to slow down for it!. result me spinning down the road luckily not hit anything else, and him nowhere in sight, he must of gone straight accross the crossroads, and left me
with a £2500 written off car., not to mention being in some serious shock as to what happened.

Well luckily he left his number plate behind along with other bits of the car, so police tracked the vehicle, which is still an ongoing thing - yet to go to court but was told it probably would.
Told insurance and they tracked the 3rd party insurance who didnt know anything about it, and then after I guess probing the driver/company (it was a company car) a few days later admitted full liability… so I got the full value on my car. i feel very lucky as I could easily have been killed by this idiot if he had hit my drivers door at the speed he was going.
Just got to see what police do now. it is an offence not to stop, give details and report an accident.

3

why on earth would you get a fine/points

4

Blimey masetheace, bet that was a rude awakening that time of the morning. I’ve seen it countless times near me, i’ve been going over a green light and a few seconds later seen headlights zipping over. Just a early morning “thing” i guess, all sorts happen lol!

d4c24a, oh i dunno, i think it’s my imagination going overtime with it as it was kind of heart racing having the gaffer coming up saying West Mercia police wer eon the phone for a chat! :open_mouth: - It was the case worker asking about any holidays planned encase it goes to court and i have to go provide evidence etc…

But, you never know if the sods will twist anything, like a truck should’nt be there etc… (no limites whatso ever, so quite legal) But yeah, been screwed over by an insurance claim before, so always weary of the theiving gits :imp:

5

d4c24a:
why on earth would you get a fine/points

you can get fined and points for failing to stop at the scene of an accident

a woman knocked me off my pushbike on my way to work one morning, many years ago now, she got done for driving without due care/reasonable consideration, failing to stop and failing to report

IIRC, the failing to stop carried the biggest fine and points whjen she was prosecuted.

the OP should be ok in this instance as he stopped and it was the other party that didn’t and will be risking getting the fine/points

6

Just re-read the last bit of my orignal post heh, not worried about the reporting of incident as i did the reporting :slight_smile: - More rather the crash itself, although i think its insurance companies fighting it out than anything else… :unamused: But the worry of apportioned some of the blame and they go oh btw, undue care & attention or something daft and dish out some rewards for the benefit…

Although, i just felt like giving up today lol! - Coming off the A127 at Junction 29 for the M25 ant clockwise, goes round the roaundabout and go to move in behind a Mazda Mx5 in the lane for the motorway, and on moving behind her she proceeds to slam and i mean proper hard brake… because the VOSA peoples were there with their lights going in front of a truck :unamused: Managed to get back out the way, and onto the motorway where upon she continued around for the A127 southend bound.

Never a dull moment in the day is there :laughing:

7

Few months back I was plodding round the M25 early one morning when a white transit van comes past and just steers into my cab, tearing my step and indicator off and scuffing the wing. We pull onto the hard shoulder, bloke gets out and starts ranting and raving how I deserved it for cutting him up on a roundabout :confused:

I asked him WTF he was on about as the last roundabout I had been on was back on the 303, he then starts going on about it was my fault and I drove into him, so I point out the insurance camera and tell him it’s all been recorded, “that’ll show you driving into me then won’t it” was his reply, don’t think so mate.

So I ask for his details, his response? “yeh right” gets back in the van and drives off. So I called my boss, he tells me to call insurance company and then the police, which I do, police ask me for a description of the driver and the van plus the reg, they then asked me to bring my details to the nearest police station within the next 24 hours.

I was on my way to Stratford so once I was tipped I had to go back to the yard so the truck could be patched up, and my boss took me down the local plod shop to hand in the details.

Now AFAIK the police stopped him later that day and got his details, his insurance coughed up pretty quick once they saw the video evidence, and my truck got repaired. Not sure if he’s gonna get prosecuted for failing to stop as I haven’t heard anything since.

8

Stu. You say in your OP that you were travelling at about 20-25mph. Your tacho should support that statement, which would indicate that you were driving carefully on what you say was a narrow road, in wet conditions. You notified the police. You should have nothing to worry about. If it comes to a court case you will be there as a witness for the prosecution. The lawyer representing your company will tell you what happens in court, and how to respond to any questions put to you by the defence barrister. Just keep calm. Listen carefully to what you are asked. You can expect to get paid for your day in court.The other guy was to blame. I,ll not end with " Good Luck", as you will not be needing it.

9

Not to derail the thread but as its been mentioned, just a point about x roads where you are on the major road:

Matters more in a car as its your own (and your passengers) self preservation you are looking out for.

Correct procedure on approach:

mirror, cover brake, look right then left into the mouths of the x roads & always be prepared to take evasive action.

Green at traffic lights DOES NOT mean go, it means go if safe. There’s only one way to find out if it is… look!

So very many vid clips on youtube of people getting T boned at junctions in the US. So unneccesary if only they widened their field of observation.

10

Thanks for the support chaps, appreciated! Just needed to vent y’know? :wink: - One of these things to chalk upto experiance. Had a letter delivered by hand (no stamp) through the door this morning from West Mercia saying they are intending to prosecute him for Due care, failure to stop, and failure to report an accident. I wished i’d have got this before the phone call, as it sounded as though we were about to battle it out who to blame and all that malarky :unamused: Although still could, but sounds like the old bill have it sorted on that front!

More clam about it now, although Buycrider, you say about the tacho… I’m on digitach, does anyone know if the the speed information be downloaded? The police didn’t ask for a print out or anything at the scene, although he did say it was fairly obvious we wern’t going at at speed as there would be alot more damage.

Cheers :smiley: