Hit the kerb in car :(

[Edasseri]

I’m a fairly new driver. I passed my test in may and it took me a while to get my confidence up to drive to work. I was ok popping to my local shops but was quite worried about driving this new, bigger car in case I bumped it or misjudged something. I persevered and I’m fine now, however driving to work this morning I hit a kerb (only at low speed, I was setting off from traffic lights) but the tire is flat and needs someone to come out and look at it to repair/change.

Just looking for reassurance or handhold really because I feel like my confidence is knocked now. I’m scared in case I do it again. Feel like I don’t want to drive it again which I know is dramatic lol

It happens. I mounted a kerb turning around a few months ago and popped the tyre.

In all fairness though, you don't learn to drive when you have your lessons. You learn to drive in the years after. It's why they say don't get a new car straight after passing your test, because it will get knocked.

It's really annoying but I'm 61 and have done this about 3 or 4 times. It's the palava of sorting the new tyre as mine have a tyre repair kit which didn't work so someone had to come out and do it. Definitely not just you.

Just joining lots of people tell you we've all done it! I did it, I'd been driving over 10 years. I was so annoyed at myself. I didn't see there was a kerb (it was on an island leaving a car park) but now when I use that car park I am so careful! Won't make that mistake again. You'll get it fixed and all will be well!

Please don't stress yourself over this. I've been driving years and years - it was only at the weekend I managed to bump the kerb gently about seven times trying to wriggle myself into a tight parallel park.

I also broke my steering rack once because I pulled over in a hurry up a kerb and completely misjudged how steep it was.

It's one of those things they insist you must never do in your driving lessons/test (for good reason), but in reality a lot of us have the odd tyre bump or alloy scrape now and again.

The lack of confidence is much more concerning than hitting a kerb. Sometimes I wonder if people fluke passes when they’re not really ready to drive independently. You need to get back in the driver’s seat asap OP and work on your confidence.

How did you get to your test without ever hitting a curb? Its probably the most common beginner mistake.

TBH if you haven't done it until now thats pretty mind blowing.

My friend who has been driving for decades, drives daily and is a perfectly good driver hit a curb the other day while trying to reverse round a corner. Just happens sometimes and can to anyone.

Also: the first cut is the deepest. Next time you make a mistake, scratch a panel or whatever, you will care less.

I was confident, I didn’t start driving on my own until my confidence was good. I’ve been driving to and from work for over a month now and my confidence is fine. But this just knocked it a bit, but I feel reassured after reading here, thanks everyone

That comment to you was harsh. Everyone makes mistakes when driving.

Some of us go from driving an hour a week in a dual control car, to driving solo. That's a big leap, even if you've passed your test, it's natural for new drivers to take some time to build up confidence. And the experience to accurately judge split second decisions on the road can take longer.

OP, in this case you made a split second decision to focus on your right hand side, and it was the correct one even if you didn't need to move to the extent that you did. Far better to hit the kerb than the lorry!

It happens, not a big deal. I reversed into a bollard in my old car, DH scraped the side of his on a stone wall (!!), we are both experienced good drivers usually!

It's overconfident and selfish drivers and the ones who think the rules don't apply to them who pose the most risk on the roads, not ones who lack confidence. There's no reason why OP shouldn't be driving.

Don’t worry, I’ve been driving for 50 years and did this the other week. Shit happens.

I did it on the very first trip I took out with all three of my children in the car, the new baby was only a few weeks old. I was obviously anxious about that and it was chucking it down too. I went down a road I don't normally use and didn't realise the pavement did a sort of chicane thing and just misjudged it.

My tyre blew up, the kids and me got a total fright and I had to phone my husband for help. I felt terrible at the time but these things happen, nobody does it on purpose.

Try to forget about it, it was an accident and it's done now. Loads of people do things like that, it's not the end of the world.

Worth getting some tyreweld to keep in the car if you don’t have a spare tyre. Temporary inflate / repair but should hold you together for long enough to get to a garage / work.

Meh, everyone does it.

I knocked and deflated a tyre in a hire car on a narrow lane in another country. Another vehicle was barrelling along and I shuffled left to the hedgerow and just caught a protruding rock at the edge. Fortunately the next place to pull into safely was a mechanic and they bashed the seal back together, reinflated it and the hire company never had to know

Bigger cars are better. They're not substantially wider than small cars but there's plenty of dicks out there that drive more aggressively around small cars and are less likely to give way, and give more respect to bigger or "faster" cars.
I've known people observe the difference when they switch between different cars within the household, and noticed a difference when I switched from my last car to my current one- same brand, so it's not that.

Yes, we do. It wasn’t intended to be harsh.

Blimey, I have done that many times! It's how we learn the size of our vehicles isn't it?

I scraped my brand new car on a car park post on day 1 of ownership.

It won't be long before the car feels like an extension of your arms.

I did this recently and it’s 15 years since I passed my test 🤦‍♀️ I’m really not sure how to be honest, I think I was just tired! It happens, don’t beat yourself up.

It certainly happens! But I’m more concerned about you being a nervous driver. Address that rather than ruminating over a fairly normal thing. (I mean this with kindness).

But I said in my post that I am confident now. I wasn’t at first due to the size of the car, so I spent the last few months building this up and have now been driving around fine and confident for the past month. The incident this morning knocked my confidence a bit because it’s the first time anything has happened and I didn’t realise it was a fairly normal thing. I popped the tire and felt like I made a huge mistake. Now that I’ve spoken about it and had reassurance on here I’m fine

@Edasseri yoy don’t sound confident at all… even taking a few months to work up to drive to work. I’ve driven behind nervous drivers and they are frankly dangerous. I’m just saying (kindly I hope) address the confidence issue.

When I had just passed my test I was unable to reverse out of a space in the supermarket car park. Had to get someone to help! That was a long time ago and I can park anywhere now. You need to drive as much as possible to get your confidence up.

It’s because work is an hour away and it’s in manchester town centre so was daunting when I had only just passed and never driven alone/in such a busy area. I had never been on a motorway and driven that kind of speed before etc and didn’t want to pay for motorway lessons so I just built up to it myself

also I HAVE addresses the confidence issue. I can now drive to work I’m absolutely fine. I only mentioned it because I wanted to give context to why the incident today knocked me a bit. If I was still not confident to drive into work then I simply just wouldn’t do it. I only do thinks I’m comfortable and confident with. I wasn’t confident at first.. I worked on it.. I’m now fine. I’m not understand your issue?

It was the lorry next to me that put me off. Maybe in hindsight I should’ve waited behind it?

Yes. Always, always give lorries more room than you think they need. They aren't very bendy and so they have to swing wide. Personally I always drop behind them until we get to a straight bit and I can gauge if they actually fit inside their lane (some towns have narrow lanes). That is when I go alongside them to go past. It's a good lesson to learn now, too many people don't drop back and then their car gets scratched, dented or squished. A new tyre is cheap in comparison 😉