Not to stop on the motorway?

[Infinity234]

I was driving on the motorway today with my 7yo son on our way to a play centre. I was in the left hand lane and the deer ran out from the left side. I didn’t really have chance to react but braked slightly and braced for impact. The deer hit the car and bounced back into the hard shoulder. I was coming off at the next junction anyway and was very shaky, my son was crying, I thought it too dangerous to shop on the hard shoulder.

As I was exiting the motorway, the passenger that was in the car that had been behind me seemed to be shaking her head at me. I drove to the nearest safe place to stop then phoned my husband in a state who told me
to inform the police, which I then did.

Have I done anything wrong here? I can’t stop thinking about it. I feel terrible for the deer, I’m a real animal lover, but also really shaken up at how serious it could have been. The damage is quite significant to the car.

I’ve hit pheasants, a seagull and a pigeon as it would’ve caused an accident if I’d tried not to hit them. Very unpleasant but better than the alternative.

You had no real chance of avoiding the deer safely. It would be utterly stupid to swerve or attempt an emergency stop in that situation.
Stopping on hard shoulder afterwards wouldnt have brought the deer back to life.

I live somewhere where there are wild horses and pigs etc. people always think about hitting a horse and killing it. But hitting a horse will write off your car. As a deer does!!!

I would likely shake my head in shock/emotion at that. I'm sure she's aware you couldn't have safely avoided it at motorway speeds.

Having broken down on the motorway I would never again stop in the emergency lane unless absolutely necessary. Traffic flies past so close and so fast.

You correctly stopped when it was safe and informed police.

My DD and I once witnessed a small herd of deer run across the motorway. We were far away enough, but several were hit by cars in front, there was nothing that the drivers could do. It must’ve been very frightening, OP, you did the best you could in the circumstances. 💐

I ran over a rabbit in a country lane in the dark once . I tried to avoid it but didn’t work . I was going to nurse an elderly patient . I had a sob to her about it 🫣.. it does shake you up but I would have done no different

YABU to assume the attitude of the other car passenger and to care about it. You haven't done anything wrong.

You never try to avoid small animals like that. Lift off maybe but you don’t brake or swerve, if you’re going round a bend you don’t even lift off. Many people are killed or seriously injured trying to avoid bunnies.

I would never stop on a motorway unless my car was broken down. To be honest it wouldn’t have occurred to me to phone the police about hitting a deer either, so it’s good that you did that. I grew up rurally and was always hitting rabbits - it’s a bit sad but my dad always drummed into me that you must never swerve to avoid an animal.

The woman could have been shaking her head for any reason and even if she did think you should have stopped, who cares? You don’t know her so I wouldn’t give her opinion another thought.

What’s the point of this thread?

You called the police, the deer was removed. If you’d done anything illegal you would have been told by them.

Just move on.

Did you do a thread about how upset you were?
I remember it if so and really felt for you.
For both of you and OP here 💐💐

A kitten ran out during SIL's driving lesson (with her dad) and he yelled "drive on!" but she didn't and swerved into the middle of the road and caught a car coming the other way - luckily just a prang but could have been serious if they'd both been driving faster.

As explained in OP's first post, she's asking posters if she did anything wrong/should have stopped, especially as another driver was shaking their head at her, and feels bad about the accident/deer.

Inspired by @Shade17's post

Yes. A large obstruction in the road could cause further accidents.

if it’s not dead an injured deer panicking on a motorway could be catastrophic.

also if it’s not dead armed response will be sent to dispatch it quickly if it’s suffering.

o/p I would think the head shake wan in sympathy, not criticism.

I once reported that a (very large) pig was walking along a main road to the police and they just laughed at me! Hopefully they also sent someone out to check on the pig.

I would have reported the deer too as a potential traffic hazard

You did exactly right.

I might have braked a bit harder for a deer, not to save the deer before anyone gets stroppy, but because a deer through the windscreen or bounced into another lane is a hazard, they are solid, even the smaller ones.

But otherwise, absolutely right!

IF the person behind was shaking their head because you hit it (and they may not have been) they'd have been shaking it a lot harder had you emergency braked, or not braked at all and launched it into the air and onto their car!

@Shade17 that really depends on the road your on and whether or not you can brake safely.

On a busy motorway absolutely not. But if you're in a deserted country lane and an animal runs out absolutely you can brake!

Not all motorways have a hard shoulder any more.

Gentle braking in a straight line maybe, but no emergency stops for rabbits, birds etc. There’s a possibility that you could lose control slamming on at 60mph. Your life is more important than theirs. It’s a risk worth taking for a human or something like a cow that could cause you significant injury if you hit it. I say this as someone who recently had a £2k bill from hitting a rabbit.

You did absolutely the correct thing.

Sad about the deer but they are at nuisance level (no natural predators in UK), so 1 less won't matter in the overall scheme of life.

Most drivers are idiots, and there are even fewer requirements to be a passenger, so I wouldn't worry about a random head shake. What did she want you do to exactly? Necromancy?

You did the right thing. Hard shoulders should only be used when you have no other choice - being on them is dangerous as is pulling back into normal traffic. I'd of also come off at the next junction especially as it was so close. The person in the car may have been trying to sympathise with you. I've hit a couple of rabbits and a pheasant and it's not nice. A deer, especially a red deer, would be a massive shock and can do a lot of damage. I'm glad you and your son are OK and hope the shock has settled.

NEVER stop on a motorway unless it is totally unavoidable.

You did the right thing IMO.