Thought I'd share this for those really bored at work on a Friday!
I had the stupidest accident ever on Monday, guy in front of me going onto a roundabout went, then suddenly stopped half-way over the line. I was already looking right & didn't realise he'd stopped & went into him at about 5mph. I drive a Golf mk4 and he was in a new 7 series (long wheel base). It felt like driving into a concrete wall! Damage to my car was as follows: cracked number plate, broken front light mounts & small scratch on bumper. Damage to his was a loose bit of trim & scratches to rear bumper. We exchanged details.
I am 26, and 3 months away from reaching the coveted 4-years no-claims period (after which the NCP can be protected). I was gutted, as my premium (which would have been 800 quid), would literally double if I lost 3 years NCB.
He called Wednesday, explaining that he didn't go to BMW as it was too expensive but a local place would sort it for £300, which I sent him same day. Can't help but feel how totally lucky I have been and what a reasonable guy he is as there are others out there who would have used the situation to their advantage.
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That is a very, very common accident.
I nearly did the exact same thing last night - got lucky that time and braked in time.
Glad you were able to sort it.
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I did exactly the same a few years ago.His Escort-bumper smashed off,tail lights broken,big dent in tailgate.My Sierra-small crack in bumper.He was suprisingly OK about it,probably shock.
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I had the same recently. I actually tried to drop the money off (£120) last night, but no one was in.
He was very nice about it, too.
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I changed my driving style at junctions after my newish Defender ran into the back of a Vectra when I looked right in a similar incident. I was distracted by what I thought was a motorbike which was a car with one headlight out looked back and the lady had stopped sharpish at the sight of this too.
Defender was £2k and the Vectra was written off £17k. Lesson learnt, don't try to read the road in these circumstances or hurry you will crash oneday.
The lack of crumple zones in a Defender make a crash of this nature quite interesting!
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I did same around four years ago.All I suffered was a broken number plate.His Passat received a hole punctured in the bumper.At the time the guy was very blase about it as it was a company car,but later he tried claiming whiplash injuries.I let my insurance company sort it out,and they gave him short shrift,when he declined a thorough medical check.
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I can't understand why people get angry after accidents - what does it achieve? Mind you, I can't understand why people don't get angry when someone cuts them up, and what does that achieve!!!??
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I did the same about 6 years ago, but I was luckily only rolling forwards at about 2mph. Caused no visible damage to a womans Escort estate, so we didnt exchange details; it just knocked the big protruding headlamp washer off my old Audi's bumper. Now with hindsight I *always* make fully sure the car in front has gone before I think about pulling out.
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Yes, a very common prang. In exactlky the same circumstances, I was a passenger in a Mini that went into the back a mate's Mini when returning home from the Prescott hill climb in the mid-1960s. My driver learned his lesson and was banned from using the car for six months or more.
I've been more careful in crawling queues since the early 1970s. We were passing slowly through roadworks in single file; I looked briefly to the right for some reason and then couldn't brake fast enough to stop the front of my Volvo 144 dipping into the rear of a Morris Minor. His bumper overriders very neatly took the glass out of my fog and spot lamps, doing no other damage.
Yup, you can't go anywhere until the vehicle in front is well out of the way.
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This must be the most common cause of accidents on UK roads.
I have done it once and nearly done it countless times, and its happened to me twice.
I changed my driving style to accomodate this thus
at the roundabout, DO NOT LOOK RIGHT AT ALL untill the car in front has gone. Then approach the line and at that point look right.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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Most of us have done this at some time. It's a learning experience.
A friend once did it because of the high driving position in his VW microbus thingy. He was looking at the car in front of the car in front, and went when it went, clocking the one in between. Very funny.
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This must be the most common cause of accidents on UK roads. I have done it once and nearly done it countless times, and its happened to me twice. I changed my driving style to accomodate this thus at the roundabout, DO NOT LOOK RIGHT AT ALL untill the car in front has gone. Then approach the line and at that point look right. ------------------------------ TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
Good tip RF, I will try to remember that ( and yes I've also done it and guy I hit was also very good about it )
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Yes TVM,thats also what I do now.As said we learn by our mistakes.Dont look right until you are at the line.
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The lack of crumple zones in a Defender
You miss the point, other cars are a Defender's crumple zone !
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Had an accident some years ago at Heathrow on the Concorde roundabout it was my fault without a doubt and the other driver who had a newish 5 series BMW initally was very aggressive about it but as soon as insurance was mentioned he says dont worry about it lets just call it quits. he then shakes hands and drives off , never heard another thing and to this day i am convinced he was not legal. why else would he want to walk away when it was obvious it was my fault, and he was ranting about it untill the insurance was mentioned...cheers...Keo.
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The lack of crumple zones in a Defender You miss the point, other cars are a Defender's crumple zone
Oh really? Have you seen the video of a defender meeting a new espace? The driver of the defender would have been marmalade.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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Oh really? Have you seen the video of a defender meeting a new espace? The driver of the defender would have been marmalade. ------------------------------ TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
>>
Where can we find that video, Mr F?
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www.renaulttv.co.uk/main.php
click safety on the left,
click mpv vs 4x4 on the right.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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Good one TVM, surprised that hasn't had more publicity, I wonder how much that would apply to other 4x4s and other large MPV's.
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Having owned a version of both, The Defender certainly feels the stronger of the two, although the passive safety in the Disco is light years ahead...
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>> The lack of crumple zones in a Defender >> >> You miss the point, other cars are a Defender's crumple zone Oh really? Have you seen the video of a defender meeting a new espace? The driver of the defender would have been marmalade. ------------------------------ TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
This is a Discovery NOT a Defender
--
Temporarily not a student, where did the time go???
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Has a very similar chasis. The effect will be the same.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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at the roundabout, DO NOT LOOK RIGHT AT ALL untill the car in front has gone. Then approach the line and at that point look right.
Cheers, its already saved me going into a new Honda yesterday!
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Yes, we've all been there and nearly done that. TVM's advice is excellent but it's quite difficult not to look right naturally.
But also - let's not BE the plonker who starts and then stops suddenly, gets hit in the back and self-righteously escapes all blame. Wait till it's definitely clear and then GO.
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I did this about 18 years ago - I certainly learnt my lesson.
--
Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
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In the Daily Telegraph paper edition (not online) Saturday - a report about fraudsters making money in the Leeds-Bradford area. How? By stopping suddenly, and being hit at roundabouts. Sometimes the scam allegedly involved cars with disconnected brake lights.
Apparently insurance companies much more thorough in their investigations about such accidents now (particularly those claiming whiplash injuries). But I'm concerned that scamster are now preferring to just quickly get a few hundred quid from drivers, without resorting to report to insurance.
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Avant, I think 'plonker' is a bit harsh for the innocent crashee, who is after all responsible for making sure he doesn't crash into anyone on the roundabout which is fairly demanding of bandwidth in itself.
I guess everybody learns this eventually either through being the crasher or the crashee - obviously it helps to bear in mind that if you are not very careful you might catch out the plonker behind.
The 'plonker' who ran into me said it wasn't his fault as he wasn't looking where he was going.
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My towbar doesn't half mess up BMW front ends as a plonker on a cross-channel ferry found out.
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Living in the UK 97-03, I had three of these roundabout bangs. I was hit twice, and I hit someone once. Early one January morning, woman in front of me leaves, I look right and leave, and find she has stopped dead about ten yards ahead. Hmm, I learned the lesson mentioned above about that. The two that hit me were when I was driving my 1991 Mazda 626. For some reason, when it was brought into UK service, the second pair of tail/brake lights was removed, possibly as a reflector was incorporated into the lights. I found a pair of the correct bulb holders and fitted them into the existing mounts on the tail light. It greatly improved the amount of light both for tail and brake lights, which had been a bit poor before. Perhaps the rather inconspicuous brake lights had caught the people out who tagged me, so I was determined it should not happen again. The other thing I did was link the brake lights with the high intensity rear fogs using a diode. So the fogs would work without the brake lights, but the brake lights would operate the fogs. Not strictly legal, but I was determined that no-one could use the excuse that they hadn't seen my brake lights. It was occasionally mentioned at MOT time, but not faulted.
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Its not that I condone this sort of accident - it DOES come down to lack of attention at the end of the day, but it does have some funny consequences every now and again.
A mate of mine has a Volvo 240 estate with a towbar and he was in one of these incidents, but it was he who was hit from behind by an Escort MK4. He came into work with a big grin on his face - the sum total of damage to his Volvo was a scratched towbar cover, of which he had another anyway ( it was a ten year old car but looked like new ) but the poor escort was pretty well written off loosing its front bumper, radiator and much twisted metal behind the bumper.
So if your ever behind a Volvo 240 coming up to a roundabout, think twice, then a third time!
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Had two of these. Once as as the person being hit. Honda Accord plowed into by an Omega. Excuse was that the chap in the Omega forgot that I was there. Was looking right and though he could make the gap, so he went for it. Foot to the floor.
Myself, done it into a hire car on a motorway roundabout. Small cracks to the number plates on both car, but nothing else.
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Glad there are other people who've done this. I went into the back of a Fiesta in my Alfa 156; had to give her £150 for a new exhaust. Tried to offer her money without insurance co being notified (thus avoiding having an accident on record) but she insisted on doing it 'properly'. Bit annoying.
On reflection, I wish I'd hit harder and written the Alfa off. Would've saved me a heap of money!
I think it is fair to call the crashee a plonker. If the car behind you can make it, you surely can, and have thus been overly hesitant.
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Mattster
Boycott shoddy build and reliability.
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My late mother was a passenger in her own car when it was hit in the side by another driver who verred over to the wrong side of the road. She was increadably shaken and so was the driver. The car - a mk 4 Escort was probably worth around £1000 at the time.
The other driver immediately asked how much it would cost to get the damage sorted. My mother simply came out with the first number in her head - £1200.
"Right" said the other driver "here's £300 and I'll come by with the rest tomorrow. Just don't involve the police." She was completely shellshocked but no one was injured. She made sure she had someone with her when the chap showed up with the rest of the cash. He counted out the £900 as promised.
As for the car, the drivers door and the offside wing were damaged as a result of the accident. She just got a minimum repair done and took the hit on the residual, which wasn't much as she sold it a few years later for around £300.
The chap who was driving her car at the time later told me that he was astounded by her apparent cool mood during the whole incident. She gave him some £50 for looking after her at the time, she gave a bit more to charity but kept most of it to go towards her new car.
H
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Quite a few years ago i was on a small garage forecourt which had arrows telling cars going down hill to go to the outside pumps and uphill to the inside pumps as it was on a dodgy bit of road, it was a served garage (remember them) and i had just had my LandRover 2a fuelled up and a woman drove in the wrong way up to my bumper, i got in and put it in reverse and looked around as i let out the clutch and BANG into the car that was right up behind me.
Ooops thinks i and got out to look at the damage and to my horror the whole valance of what i think was a Honda was on the floor.
The elderly woman whose car it was and i looked at it aghast.
The pump attendant came over and said ,oh one of those, picked up the valance and popped it back on.
The woman who had come in the wrong way had come round to see what was holding her up , the Honda owner took a deep breath and i winced, here it comes i thought, but she berated the other woman, look what you made this lad do, i left very quickly.
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