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Leaving the scene of an accident

Ok, i know what i did was wrong before anyone starts.
I was in a shopping centre and whilst reversing out of a space i hit another car, not badly at all. Now i was scared and didnt know what to do, so i left. Now my insurance company have contacted me, and i recieved a letter from the police asking me to call them.
Ive had my licence for a year and currently have no points.

Im wondering what will happen to me / if i'll be prosecuted / recieve points :frown:

grrr... i was so stupid to leave.

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Reply 1

Bavarian Motor Works

hmmmm go with the story, you where not aware you hit a car, as you being a woman this is beliavable im afraid.

you will be fine if you stick to this lol..give your insurance details etc and go along with it from now on

Reply 2

Mr Catbert

You're a ****, I hope you get absolutely hammered with 6 points a massive fine and an insurance hike like you wont believe. I don't want people like you on the road.

I am just glad you got caught, its people like you that put our premiums through the roof.

Call the police, talk to them and see what happens.

Reply 3

installedpear

yeah! It's totally plausibe that you didnt realise you hit the car.

but be careful... because it would seem that someone saw you and took your registration details.... did you get out and look? because it would be hard to feign ignorance if someone witnessed you getting out and looking.

Id say you looked but you couldnt see any damage? would you say the bump was small enough that you could easily overlook it?

Reply 4

stordoff

Depends, did you leave a note etc. for the other driver or just drive off?

Reply 5

Bavarian Motor Works

Oh yeah and be prepared for a flaming from the motorists for being a bint in the first place :smile:

Reply 6

Angelil

In future, if it ever happens again, you should stop and leave your name and contact number on a bit of paper under the windscreen. It's the decent thing to do.

You could go with not realising you'd hit the car/caused damage, but I'm afraid if someone/the CCTV clearly saw you for long enough for the police to be able to identify you and subsequently send you a letter about the incident, you could end up just having to take the rap. I reckon that unless you're extremely lucky, you'll have to put up and shut up, and either way learn from this experience.

Reply 7

Student2806

well it's pretty obvious someone saw you, so feigning ignorance would be a stupid thing to do, especially if you got out of the car.

i doubt you'll be prosecuted, but expect your insurance to skyrocket.

Reply 8

prodriven

Just stick to the story. The insurance company will pay out and you may get a telling off from the police. But if you are completely honest, explain that your a new driver and weren't sure what to do. Then you should be fine.

The maximum penalty for the offence is very harsh, but thats for when people leave the scene of fatal, or extremely serious, accidents. I very much doubt they would bother to bring charges against you for a small car park ding. :smile:

Reply 9

nikki_baby

I've told my insurance company i hit the car. I didnt get out and look, but when i reversed further out of the space i could only see a few small scratches. There was a few on my car that wiped off so i assumed the other car would be the same. I know im a complete idiot.
I just dont wanna loose my licence / be prosecuted. End of really.

Reply 10

Good bloke

AMG

Frankly, this is pretty stupid advice, not to mention completely dishonest. The OP has not stated how the police tracked her down. If a witness saw the whole thing, or she was spotted on CCTV, there may well be evidence that she did know that her car had hit another (which she clearly did).

Reply 11

prodriven

Mr Catbert

Come on, she admitted it was a mistake and a stupid thing to do.

Everyone makes mistakes at some time of another.

Reply 12

Mr Catbert

Yes, just like shooting someone is a mistake and a stupid thing to do,

doesn't mean you should get sympathy for it (Unless it's Gordon Brown, in which case a knighthood is in order)

If someone hit my car, I would want to trace them down and then tenderise them with a wrecking bar. Especially if it's some ditzy girl that claimed she was scared and didn't know what to do.

I'm sorry, if you dont know what to do in a given situation, you shouldn't be on the road :mad:

Reply 13

nikki_baby

Good bloke

I dont know how they tracked me down and frankly im not bothered. I should have given my details at the time etc.
All i want to know is what is likely that will happen to me now? I cant speak to the police until monday. Im hoping that if i admit i did it / it was wrong / i was scared etc i wont get a serious penalty. Maybe just 3 points :frown:

Reply 14

Mr Catbert

I'm hoping 6. Then you can do the tests again, and hopefully you'll remember this time.

Reply 15

Bavarian Motor Works

nikki_baby

I think you are looking at more than just points here.....

leaving the scene of an accident is so bad, oh so bad!

Reply 16

ssk2

hmmmm go with the story, you where not aware you hit a car, as you being a woman this is beliavable im afraid.

Mmmm.... mild sexism, just what I need to wake me up in the midday heat.

Reply 17

freeforever

I'd just explain to the police/insurance what you have explained on here. One of my mates did the same thing but got let off with only a slight hike in insurance as he was honest about the situation, it was a mates car he hit though and I don't know how generous your local cops will be, my mate was lucky as his friend told police not to bother with charges...Hope it turns out ok for you :smile:

Reply 18

Angelil

Catbert...get some perspective. IT'S A CAR. You probably don't have anything worth dinging anyway, like most of us on here :p:

OP, it'll probably just be 3 points. 6 if you're unlucky.

She's not talking about an accident where two cars collided at speed, she's talking about a car park ding where the other car was stationary. That's not to say driving off was right...it wasn't. However, I think people need to see this for what it really is.

Reply 19

Good bloke

Read this: http://www.lawanswers.co.uk/questions/maximum-penalty-for-leaving-scene-of-an-accident

"In the UK the maximum penalty for failing to stop after an accident or failing to report an accident is 6 months imprisonment, a £5,000 fine, a discretionary ban (at the magistrates will) and 5-10 penalty points."