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Original poster

Splashed a pedestrian, he damaged my car

90 replies

mylittlesandwich · 04/08/2020 20:22

Driving home this evening. A car ahead of me went through what I thought was surface water, I then realised it was a puddle. I slowed as much as I could without the car behind me ploughing into me and swerved as much as I could without swerving in to oncoming traffic but I still splashed the pedestrians walking by. I cringed as I did it.
There was then an almighty bang and I assumed that something had fallen off my car, the nearest place to check was by going right back round the roundabout and in to a car park near the puddle. As I drove back that way the man I splashed started screaming at me. I pulled in and opened my window, he started hurling abuse.

Turns out he threw the battery pack from a drill at my car in rage because I splashed him. I apologised for splashing him, explained that I hadn't meant to. He told me I'd assaulted him. He dented my car, on the side where my 8 month olds car seat is, my baby had started screaming as soon as it happened. He just kept repeating that what I'd done was a crime (I know it can be but it depends on the situation). He was nasty and I was upset.

I don't know what I want from this thread as I know I'm likely to be given abuse for driving through the puddle but I'm on my own with DS (we're now home) and I just needed to let someone know what happened I think.

OP posts:

wowfudge · 04/08/2020 23:07

Sleep on it, but there's no way you would be fined for that. There may be CCTV or traffic cameras showing you trying to avoid the puddle. Definitely ring the police or go to your nearest station and report what happened.

oakleaffy · 04/08/2020 23:09

I have been seriously soaked in filthy gutter water by cars, and it is horrible...and freezing cold.
Drenched to the skin, it is almost impossible to do anything but go home and change onto dry clothes after having a shower.

I have shouted at car drivers who have done this..I think the bloke was in the wrong, but it is such a shock to be drenched suddenly with dirty gully water..He probably had something to throw close at hand and used it.
Doubt the police will want to be bothered..I try very hard not to drive through puddles if there are pedestrians anywhere nearby, as it is so infuriating to get a drenching. {road water is never clean}

Serendipity79 · 04/08/2020 23:12

If you're in a moving car and there's water on the road but you cant move out of the way then there is little choice but to drive through it albeit slowly where you can.

There is a choice about throwing a solid item at a car where a child is sat in the back purely because you got splashed by a puddle.

I'd be reporting him. He has caused criminal damage and it could have been much worse

Original poster

mylittlesandwich · 04/08/2020 23:23

@oakleaffy I know it's not nice, it's happened to me in the past and I would never do it intentionally. His actions seemed disproportionate, which he said himself when he phoned. I do however suspect you're right about the police not caring. Someone in the local area is shopping windows with an air rifle. That's illegal too and they don't seem bothered.

OP posts:

IAintentDead · 04/08/2020 23:31

Like you say 'He's calmed down and offered to pay for the damage' to me that shows that he knows who is in the wrong legally.

I like to think that I would have stayed there and called the police to come to a road traffic incident there and then. If anyone have been charged it would have been him. I know that in reality I would have done pretty much the same as you. Although I think hope I would have misremembered my number.

The only time you can get in trouble for splashing a pedestrian is if it is deliberate and can be proved to be so. It's impossible to avoid all puddles. Whereas, damaging a car deliberately by throwing something at it is always a crime and potentially very dangerous.

LastTrainEast · 04/08/2020 23:36

He got soaked! It felt deliberate (I used to know someone who liked doing that) and he overreacted. Now he is calmer, apologising and offering to pay.

I'd settle for that.

LizB62A · 04/08/2020 23:46

IMHO every driver should have a front and rear dashcam to help in situations like this - then it's not just your word against his (plus the audio would have picked up the thump of him damaging your car)

Nomore79 · 04/08/2020 23:49

Me and my daughter got soaked by a passing motorist a few years ago. She was 7 and the wave hit me at chest height and her at face height. The driver obviously needed to get his foot down, it was a flood really, covered the road and people shouldn't have been driving through it. We spent the night in a & e because she got a face full of grit and it went in her eyes, and she wound up with a scratched retina. We had to walk a mile home soaking wet and freezing cold with my daughter's eyes sore and stinging.
There's no way he didn't see us, but clearly getting where he wanted to go was far more important than mere pedestrians.
It's horrible to suddenly be doused with cold, wet and dirty water and a massive shock. Even worse when you can see it coming and have no where to go.
The guy has apologised and offered to pay for the damage. He lost his shit, he shouldn't have done. He didn't know your baby was in the car any more than you knew the puddle wasn't surface water - that doesn't excuse him throwing something at your car though.
He's offered to make good the damage so I'd let him and then let it go.

ShesMadeATwatOfMePam · 04/08/2020 23:50

I wouldn't report him to be honest. He's seen the error of his ways and he's offered to pay for the damage.

borntohula · 04/08/2020 23:54

It's annoying as hell getting splashed but his reaction was worse, which he obviously knows. It clearly was not deliberate on your part, don't take his disproportionate reaction to heart.

Longdistance · 05/08/2020 00:04

If he starts dicking about and not wanting to pay for the damage, I’d call the police. You did actually go back and apologise to him, so I doubt they’d fine you £2,500. Really dangerous to throw something at a moving car.
I hope he sticks to his word.

FrodosRing · 05/08/2020 00:04

@FixTheBone

It's only a crime if you deliberately or carelessly splash pedestrians.

I would have beaten the shit out of him.

China reckon you would have.

blurpityblurp · 05/08/2020 00:14

Why the fuck do men come to Mumsnet to brag about how menacing and violent they are?

ivykaty44 · 05/08/2020 02:00

If you splashed the pedestrian to get them wet you were certainly driving to fast for the conditions

Hopefully you’ll drive slower in wet conditions in future & you were fortunate you didn’t do more damage

Having someone retaliate to your driving was I expect a shock to you and unpleasant.

If you choose to go to the police you could find that 3 points on your licence and the pedestrians punishment will be enough to make sure you both don’t repeat your actions

brastrapbroken · 05/08/2020 02:11

You splashed someone with a puddle, drove back to the person and gave him your number while he threw something at you car

Sorry OP but what on earth?

Flaxmeadow · 05/08/2020 02:15

Maybe drive slower next time

Lillygolightly · 05/08/2020 02:46

One dark winter morning it was absolutely pouring down and I was pulling out of my road to join the line of traffic. There were puddles everywhere and hard to tell what is shallow or deep when it’s pouring down and still dark. Anyway after I had pulled in to join the line there were several almighty thumps on the rear passenger side of the car. I look round to see a figure dressed all in black, he was shouting something whilst hitting the car window. I couldn’t hear what he was shouting as poor baby DD in the back was screaming her head off having been frightened to death with the banging. Anyway I dropped the window and he was shouting insisting I had soaked him!! I had no idea how as I’d pulled slowly out of the road joining the line of rush hour morning traffic so it wasn’t like there was even space to get enough speed up to make a sizeable splash. I told him I was sorry he got splashed but frankly with the weather and traffic on the road there was nothing I could do about it and that since he had frightened the life out of my baby I wasn’t going to be stopping to discuss it with him rolled up my window and carried on.

That afternoon when I came home from the afternoon school run there was a police officer waiting for me outside my house. Turned out he had reported me, I explained the situation to the officer and relayed exactly what had happened and DD1 who was 5 at the time piped up being nosy and asked if we were talking about the scary man who was banging on the car and made the baby cry. After DD said that the officer couldn’t have been any nicer, asked if their was damage to my car, if baby DD was ok and I wanted to her to take any further action against the man, I said no but she said she’d be having words with him anyway.

It’s life, sometimes we get splashed, it’s happened to me too and know it’s not pleasant but it’s still no excuse for violent threatening behaviour.

Flaxmeadow · 05/08/2020 04:04

...and stop driving in dangerous conditions

EvilPea · 05/08/2020 04:21

It is truly grim being splashed.
We’ve had it walking to school, the water is grotty, full of mud and dirt. I’ve had to walk the mile home, shower and change before work and so have the kids before school.

Whilst his actions were unacceptable. Mine were to stand in the street dripping and crying. I can’t blame him.

But as a driver I do know how easy it is to misjudge something. I don’t think I could take the full money off him though.

cissyandbessy · 05/08/2020 05:06

Fix the bone - your reply is irritating as I'm sure loads of women would feel anger and want to lash out in this kind of situation. Yet for a multitude of reasons to do with strength imbalance, power imbalance and justified fears of what may happen if they physically react in this way they don't and can't do this.

Balloonsgoaway · 05/08/2020 05:14

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Balloonsgoaway · 05/08/2020 05:15

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DerbyshireGirly · 05/08/2020 05:49

@blurpityblurp he has got a very expensive car don'tcha know

Original poster

mylittlesandwich · 05/08/2020 06:34

I just knew this would turn in to why I was wrong and that throwing something at my car was no worse than driving through a puddle.
@EvilPea I certainly will be taking the money from him, he got splashed. Unpleasant yes I get that but his reaction was to throw a heavy object at a moving vehicle, we're fortunate the only damage is to my car.
@Flaxmeadow I was driving around 35 in a 40, I had just come off the motorway and was slowing gradually, I slowed further when I saw the puddle, I'm not sure exactly what speed I went through the puddle at but it was less than 35. If I stopped driving in "dangerous conditions" I'd never go anywhere. I live in Scotland. It was rain, heavy sudden rain, but just rain.
@brastrapbroken I know, when I got home I was kicking myself but I really wasn't thinking straying and DS was losing his mind in the back of the car.
@ivykaty44 nope having someone throw an object at my car cannot be excused. If it came to it I slowed and moved out, I did all I could.

OP posts:

ivykaty44 · 05/08/2020 06:42

I didn’t excuse anyone throwing something at your car - I said it must have been a shock for you to have someone retaliate

You were both in the wrong

If you’d been travelling slower you could have avoided this splashing (not the retaliation that was also wrong) the driver behind you was also driving to fast 💨

Next time you might put your own child in danger, slow down and be more careful drive to the conditions

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