Shaken after reversing

[shufflestep]

Just posting because I need to tell someone really! I was leaving for work this morning, started to reverse to get out of the parking space. Checked my wing mirror for things coming behind, over my shoulder out of the rear windscreen, put the car into reverse and looked at the reversing camera. Started to reverse slowly, then a woman with a dog appeared inches behind me having obviously been crossing the road.

I brake, she thumps the car clearly very cross, I hold my hand up to apologise, she goes on her way. They were not hit. Feeling very shaky now, but I'm not sure what else I could have done? In fact if it wasn't for the reversing camera I wouldn't have seen them as soon as I did. Is it me, or should you be careful walking behind a reversing car!

I'm feeling terrible, but I genuinely don't know what else I could have done.

Sounds like you were placing too much reliance on technology.

If you'd been looking over your shoulder, you'd have probably seen her sooner with having a wider range of vision from your eye and head movement.

Reversing cameras aren't a substitute for looking over your shoulders, they are an "extra" to supplement your own vision.

Not uncommon though. I was in a car park with herringbone parking spaces and watched as two cars both reversed out opposite eachother at the same time and side-swiped eachother. As I witnessed it (and had it on dashcam), I stopped to talk to them, but wasn't needed as they both agreed it was a 50:50 and both admitted they'd been relying on their reversing cameras and didn't see the other car, which they'd have been able to if they'd looked over their shoulders out of the side windows!!

Thanks, feeling much better now for a good talking to! The reason it shook me so much actually is because she was coming from the driver's side, I couldn't see her at all from the rear windscreen looking over my left shoulder! It was the dog I saw first (pulling slightly ahead of her), because the reversing camera is on the bumper - no way I could have seen him as he's too low to the ground to see from a window that close. I admit I do use my reversing camera a lot, main because I work in schools some days, and small children can be seen if the are straight behind your car with it.

I thought of this thread today when I was in town (as a pedestrian, as always) and saw someone almost cause an accident by walking out onto a crossing without looking. You wouldn't expect an adult to go rushing out into the middle of the road from between parked cars. (It's a badly-placed zebra crossing but that's another story.) There's not much use being in the right if you're the one who ends up with a broken leg. Obviously drivers need to be aware that sort of thing might happen but pedestrians can do themselves a favour by looking before they cross the road!

Always reverse IN to a parking space, it's much easier & then you won't ever have this problem

If you read the OP's responses, you'd know she was parked on the road so reversing in wasn't an option. She was reversing back to get a clearer view of the road before driving off as there vehicle right in front of her.