Who’s the red car or van villan?

Why should its ‘low-life’ driver escape the consequences of their cowardly actions?

They are the questions the decent, recently retired lady who returned to her car, to find it damaged by a ‘hit and run’ driver, is asking.

The amount of damage done was not a little parking scuff - annoying though that would have been - but damage to three off-side panels that will result in a four figure repair bill, loss of the insurance policy excess figure and a much higher insurance premium next year - at a time when the victim’s income has reduced due to giving up work to help her single-parent daughter with child care.

The amount of damage done (1.3 metres in length) means that the offending red vehicle must itself have suffered damage and its driver must have been very well aware of the damage done - but still left the scene of the accident without providing personal and insurance details.

Yes this scenario frequently happens but that doesn’t make it right and it increases all insurance costs for innocent drivers. It’s even worse in this case because the innocent driver in question once accidentally caused a small amount of damage to another car, in a car park and waited over an hour for its driver to return - in order to apologise and to provide insurance details. She believes in “do as you would be done by”. The driver who made off after the accident obviously does not have those commendable principles.

To right this wrong, we suggest that the person or people who know anything about this - preferably the name and address of the villain of the piece here or the vehicle registration but really any relevant information - give it to this paper and we will pass it on to the victim.

The damaged car is a (2006) Mercedes B class - which are particularly good at resisting impacts, including side impacts (one of the reasons for purchase, last year, being grand-daughter’s safety) - so to bend in a panel needs more than a gentle impact!

Angry and Honest

(via email)