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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Was I involved in this car accident? (attempt 2)

253 replies

Chefwifelife · 20/12/2019 20:12

I was at the bottom of a hill turning right onto a main road. Turned right when clear then heard a loud noise. Looked in my mirror to see a wing mirror shattering and debris in the air. Pull over a little way up the road and go and see if I can help.

The lady is really shaken up. I ask what happened and she tells me that she just looked up and I was in front of her!

There is zero damage to my car. I have checked it three times but can only find mud BlushShe has damage to her drivers wing mirror and drivers front wheel arch.

I’ve rung my insurance company, and they have got the information on file ready but it just all seems a bit bizarre.

Anyone been in a similar situation?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
13
SmellMySmellbow · 20/12/2019 22:45

Another car might not have stopped if they were uninsured. I watched a lady getting her car smashed along the wing by someone changing lanes at a roundabout today. They sped off.

lisasimpsonssaxophone · 20/12/2019 23:00

Bollard or another car going straight on at the junction. ‘I just looked up and saw your car’ suggests to me that she may have blacked out for a split-second on impact and then ‘looked up’ and saw your car there?

VivaLeBeaver · 21/12/2019 06:21

The last person to hit me didn’t stop. I was stuck in traffic, they tried to squeeze past the back of me. Hit me, knew they had because they stopped briefly. And went again, still hitting me. My car was rocking.

They sped off, I did a U turn and chased them down the duel carriageway for 3 miles. Beeping my horn, flashing, driving alongside them while they ignored me, looked straight ahead. She eventually pulled over and was all defensive. Her car was mangled down one side from front to back and she initially tried saying she didn’t think she’d hit me!

So people do drive off, especially if it’s their fault.

PhilCornwall1 · 21/12/2019 06:36

If she has that much damage on her car and is saying she hit you, a) you'd have felt it and heard it inside your car b) you car would be damaged too.

My car is built like a brick shit house and I clipped a post, even at a very low speed, there is some damage.

Interesting she said "she had just looked up", where was she looking before?

CadburyFestiveFriends · 21/12/2019 07:04

I do appreciate that posting on MN may help you to feel justified, but it doesn’t matter one bit what YANBU % you get, the accident/insurance world doesn’t run on common sense or public opinion. If I had a £ for every angry customer I’d had to explain ‘yes well we’ve admitted fault anyway’ to who were adamant they were not in the wrong, I’d have retired by now 👍🏻

It’s like posting asking about medical symptoms, most of MN can agree with you but it doesn’t matter. You’ll go see your Dr and they’ll tell you either way. If this woman puts a claim in I’m almost sure it’ll be held against you and dealt with.

HotDogGuy · 21/12/2019 07:29

You were joining the road she was on - it’s your responsibility to make sure it is completely clear and safe to do so. It clearly was not. It sounds like she’s hit something avoiding you - it’s your fault.

DoesntLeftoverTurkeySoupDragOn · 21/12/2019 07:48

If you saw her wing mirror shatter through your rear-view mirror, she must have been directly behind you by then, so the mirror couldn't have come into contact with your car, could it?

If she saw the wing mirror shatter, how did she not see any other car that might have been involved or any indication of what the woman might have hit?

Straycatstrut · 21/12/2019 08:01

I can't believe this other woman is saying she didn't know what she hit! How can you not know what you hit?

For that amount of damage whatever she hit would have some marks at least, so it can't be your car. You could have caused her to swerve though, but she could have swerved to avoid hitting you. Either you or she weren't paying enough attention. She "looked up" what was she looking at as you were joining the road?!

MummaGiles · 21/12/2019 08:11

Only read the first couple of pages of the thread but my guess is that someone else was behind you coming down the hill, and turned left towards this woman and hit her car when she was probably looking at her phone, so she missed it (hence her comment that she just looked up and saw the back of your car). The other car drove off, leaving you to deal with the aftermath. It might even be that the woman was over the central line and slightly in the other lane of traffic which is how she got hit.

All speculation I know but that seems the most likely scenario to me.

Equanimitas · 21/12/2019 08:46

It seems pretty clear that you pulled out into her path

But how would that dent the driver's side wheel arch and shatter the mirror? When someone pulls out into your path, if you can't stop it's the front of your car that takes the brunt of it. To shatter the mirror, either OP brushed the side of her car - which is inconsistent with her saying the car was in front of her , and impossible for OP not to notice - or she hit something else, almost certainly the bollard.

DoesntLeftoverTurkeySoupDragOn · 21/12/2019 09:18

It seems pretty clear that you pulled out into her path

But how would that dent the driver's side wheel arch and shatter the mirror?

One obvious answer is by making her swerve.

NewName73 · 21/12/2019 09:22

Someone did this to me and all the impact was on the side of the car.

My kids were in the back, it's a miracle it wasn't worse.

Witchend · 21/12/2019 09:27

You can certainly have no damage and cause a lot of damage.
I was involved in an accident where my car was written off and you wouldn't have known theirs was touched.
Wasn't a rubbish car I had, although a bit old, just how it hit.
Things like wing mirrors are designed to damage to take energy in a crash. If the wingmirrors are made to be indestructible then if you catch one then the car will be far more significantly deflected from the path and more likely to hit another vehicle or get into a dangerous situation.

Karwomannghia · 21/12/2019 09:35

Definitely looks like she hit the bollard or lamppost

Original poster
Chefwifelife · 21/12/2019 10:32

@CadburyFestiveFriends I am not quite sure what you mean about %? Is there a poll or something?

OP posts:
Original poster
Chefwifelife · 21/12/2019 10:35

I’m going back with DH to have a look and also ask at the garage opposite if anyone saw what happened. This lady hasn’t contacted me and I haven’t heard from any insurance company.

OP posts:
HeyMac · 21/12/2019 10:43

Your diagram would suggest that you pulled out in front of her?

HeyMac · 21/12/2019 10:48

Oh for goodness sake my WiFi is shit and that was meant to be posted pages ago

VivaLeBeaver · 21/12/2019 11:25

I think if I was the other person and I got home and thought about it I'd realise that having no idea what happened doesn't look very good and maybe not contact you.

Or guess she could be getting quotes or waiting to hear back from her insurance.

FlatCheese · 21/12/2019 11:47

#TeamBollard here as well. I know that road and it would be a strange thing to go down the hill and turn left because if you were going into Bath you'd carry on the A431 and not come down the hill at all, so I don't think she's hit another car that was turning left. If you were ahead of her when you saw her wing mirror damaged and there's no damage to your car then she's hit something else, not you. There's clear visibility both ways to pull out at the bottom of the hill so I doubt you could have caused the accident.

Presumably you were coming from the RUH and out to the Globe roundabout. Personally, although I come down that way I always carry on further to the road with the post box at the end when I'm going the other way (easier left turn at the top with better visibility)

Slightaggrandising · 21/12/2019 11:56

No one in this country is legally or contractually obliged to stop at a road accident. NHS or not.

easyandy101 · 21/12/2019 12:18

If she'd hit you and that was crumple damage then the front right light would be smashed or pushed in. That's someone hitting her

Only part of your car that could do that in the described situation is your front left bumper and id expect it to show some damage

I reckon whoever pulled out going left behind you crossed lanes and clipped her with right hand bumper/corner

easyandy101 · 21/12/2019 12:20

Like this

Was I involved in this car accident? (attempt 2)
easyandy101 · 21/12/2019 12:21

Like that

Was I involved in this car accident? (attempt 2)
easyandy101 · 21/12/2019 12:22

ffs it's now decided to post both Grin

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