Was rear ended - other driver blamed me and he has a witness

[Charcharm]

was Stationary for around five seconds at a t junction with a give way box, traffic ahead of me meant I couldn’t advance so I was letting one or two cars through. All of a sudden there is a crash from the impact of the car behind me driving into me.

we move over to a side road and exchange details. I’m shaking from the shock at this point. The guy had a friend in the car so has a witness to back up his story, which is that I slammed the breaks out of nowhere which caused this to happen.

This is completely untrue but that’s his story. I don’t have a witness as I didn’t have the presence of mind to get the details of the people around who saw the incident. I’ve made a police report, my husband spoke to the other driver who repeated his story. Will call insurance next.

what’s my situation? There is around £400-£1000 damage to my car and I have a light concussion (despite the low velocity). I feel sick and shouldn’t be on my phone but I’m feeling so stressed, and wanted to see if anyone else has been in a similar situation?

Thanks in advance

As everyone has said, he can spin it any way he likes, and it’ll get him absolutely nowhere.

It doesn’t matter if you did slam on the breaks - a child could have ran out in front if you.

Its up to the driver behind you to keep a safe distance and watch if you brake and do the same.

He's trying to intimidate you. You are not at fault. Have you been checked out for a concussion? Please do - and make sure you tell your insurers.

I doubt they’ll get anywhere .

Under the Highway Code drivers must leave enough distance to stop safely and anticipate vehicles slowing or stopping at junctions

Speak to your insurance company , explain what actually happened and leave it with them to sort out A passenger isn’t impartial and therefore not really a reliable witness

I am an insurer by trade and have a history in handling motor claims. It is not true that if you go into the back of someone it is always your fault, but in reality, it is unlikely to be contested without very strong evidence. For example, dash com footage from a case where a driver overtook moved in and then "brake-checked" the driver behind. I would report exactly what you think happened to your insurer and let them go from there.

Even if you had slammed your breaks on, it’s irrelevant as they clearly hadn’t left a safe stopping distance. They’ve rear-ended you, their fault.

As for the witness and how you’ve described it happening, I would say you believe the other driver was distracted by their passenger.

Yes I thought the same

@MotherJessAndKittens spjnds horrible. Much much worse than what happened to me, I feel crap so can only imagine how you all must have felt.

The man who drove into me is a jerk, I suppose these situations bring out the worst in people. It’s stressful on both sides.

Thanks everyone, I feel reassured. Time to put away the screen for now x

He shouldn’t have been so close and also why was he driving at speed while rammed up your arse?!!!! HE is the one at fault and as he drove into the back of you most insurance companies will
also conclude that

Exactly this! 👍

Its always the fault of the hitter rather than the hitee in rear end crashes

agree with others. Even if you had stopped suddenly, he's still at fault. There are lots of reasons for a car to stop that the one behind might not be aware of, like a child on the road or the driver having a heart attack/seizure of similar. It's up to them to keep a safe distance.

Depending on how new your car is accident investigators can easily tell exactly whether you were moving or stationary (and how long for) at time of impact but not sure whether they would go to that extent for a minor accident.

He doesn't know you didn't have a dashcam or cctv footage or black box fitted etc.

Exactly.

You are still meant to leave enough space to be able to do an emergency stop, What if you HAD slammed the brakes on because a child had run out?

Other driver at fault

Did you suffer whiplash ?
Concussion?
You need to get checked out at hospital.
Whiplash can be nasty and lingering. You can't tell in advance how it might affect you. If you need to claim for personal injury or lost earnings you need to have it documented at the time.
Also any head injuries should be medically assessed for your own safety.
All the best OP.

This, don’t worry about it

Just pass on his details to your insurer and give them your side of the story. If you didn’t reverse then you are actually all good.

Yes, as far as I am aware, it is always the person behind's fault for rear ending someone as they should have been attune to sudden stops etc. I have done this and took responsibility, as is expected. The only occasion I disputed this was when someone backed into me as a stationary vehicle. They also tried to intimidate me.

Some men people (not all of course but some) just don't like to admit they cocked up.

So will he face any kind of sanction for trying to lie his way out of it if, for example, there is cctv?

Makes no difference if you braked suddenly or were stationary. He was not paying attention or too close in either situation. He knows this and is trying to reverse the blame. It won't work. Report to your insurance and let them deal with it.
People can be right twats about stuff like this. Someone drove into the side of one of our stationary work vehicles from a garage exit and tried to say it wasn't his fault when the insurance claim began. Didn't work and his insurance paid out in full. It's the desperation to avoid a rise in insurance premiums.
Don't worry about it, honestly. It will get sorted.

Great that this is the story he’s decided to spin as it completely incriminates him and exonerates you.

As others have said, you might have slammed on because someone did something stupid in front of you. If he can't stop in time when you slam the brake on, you are not at fault. I mean I guess if he could prove you had slammed on and done it for fun, then you might get done for dangerous driving... but he won't be able to prove that.

Insurance company will find in your favour. Even if you braked, it’s tough. Car behind shouldn’t proceed until you have. Hope you’re ok.

I was a witness for a car accident where someone did slam their breaks on out of nowhere.

ultimately the insurance companies said it didn’t matter & the driver should have left enough stopping distance.

My colleague was rear ended and she was found liable. She hadn't done anything wrong. The man who drove into her was known to the police, she thinks she was the victim of fraud.