Crap Car Accident

[Access Denied]

So I was involved in a car accident tonight. Giving a couple of colleagues a lift home from work. Pissing down with rain. Went round an s-bend, started accelerating as I came out of it, then all of a sudden the car aquaplaned. Then the tyres caught and it fishtailed. I couldn't control it. Straight into a tree.

Me and the front seat passenger are alright, we were wearing our seatbelts. He's got a bloody nose from the airbag and a bruised chest from the seatbelt. I've got various grazes, sprains and bruises. The 18 year old in the back wasn't wearing his seatbelt. Straight between the seats and smacked his head on the dashboard. Huge cut above his eye, badly split lip. Don't know more than that at the moment.

I keep going over and over it in my mind. What if I'd gone round the bed a bit slower? (I wasn't speeding) What if I hadn't accelerated quite so early? What could I have done differently? The police will interview me for careless driving but they said it looks like just an accident. They also said that as an adult it was his responsibility to wear his seatbelt but none of that makes me feel any less responsible. I should've made sure he had his seatbelt on.

 

[Ormorof]

that sucks hope everyone is ok!

but yeah as an adult he should have worn his seatbelt (who doesnt wear seatbelts these days? )

 

[Edmond]

Hope you're all ok this morning

You can spend all day saying what if, but you all walked away from it which is the main thing

 

[dysfunction]

You can't change anything that happened so try not to dwell on it. It just makes you miserable.
As Edmond said be thankful you all are fine apart from a few bad bumps.

 

[Access Denied]

I've spoken to the hospital. He's apparently sitting up, talking and eating and drinking. They're keeping him in for a couple of days but they think he'll be fine. Nasty cut above his eye and probably a concussion but nothing life threatening.

Massive relief to me.

 

[Mabs]

driver is responsible for their own seatbelt, and any children under a certain age, 15 ? - not sure, legally youre fine, also hes a stupid cunt for not wearing one

also "wasnt speeding" vs "was driving at a suitable speed for the conditions"... ?

end of the day these things happen, he should feel lucky he didnt go through the windscreen and end up as giblets, as for you.. only you know if were watching the road, paying attention etc, but it happens, chalk it up to life experiences and move on

 

[Raven]

Yup. Not your fault he wasn't belted up. Lesson learned for him.

Shit happens, there is nothing you can do about it now so move on.

 

[CorNokZ]

Glad to hear you're okay, as well as the other passengers.

My mom always said "The car can't go unless everyone is buckled up". I've applied it to my driving and it* (---> 9+0´y7tr54gitumr b hr454jo0i pojn <--- son decided to make his first FH post..)

*works.

 

[Raven]

Welcome CorNokZ jnr, that bit of text made more sense than some of the drivel posted on here

 

[Tom]

then all of a sudden the car aquaplaned.

"All of a sudden" is what people usually say after not having correctly observed the prevailing conditions and driven accordingly. There was water on the road, therefore it was entirely predictable that there might also be pools of standing water, which presumably, is what you drove through. The temperature was also quite low and if you have normal tyres on (not winter tyres), your car will have noticeably less grip than it will in summer. Perhaps you only have a few mm of tread on your rear tyres, which will make things worse (whereas front tyre loss of traction will cause easily-correctable understeer).

I'm not having a go at you, but since you said that you keep going over it in your mind, I'm just making the point that had you been more observant you wouldn't have crashed.

Concentration, observation, anticipation, space and time - COAST.

 

[TdC]

Glad you and those other guys are still with us chum.

Please try and stop playing that what-if game. That you're doing it shows you're a good person, but accidents happen and you can second-guess yourself regarding this particular instance till the cows come home but that will change exactly nothing about what happened. Let the experts tell you what was what, learn from it and take this knowledge with you in to the future.

Btw, I'd also advise you to try and go for a quiet and controlled drive again as soon as you are able. Use what happened to better yourself; don't let it throw you off your game!

 

[Exioce]

Some lessons you have to learn the hard way. Look forward to years of extra-cautious wet weather driving!

 

[Billargh]

Welcome CorNokZ jnr, that bit of text made more sense than some of the drivel posted on here

I already prefer it to DaGaffers know it all rants!

I'll just echo what everyone else has said in the thread, lessons learned etc and at least you're alreet.

 

[Gwadien]

I already prefer it to DaGaffers know it all rants!

I'll just echo what everyone else has said in the thread, lessons learned etc and at least you're alreet.

Someone you might be able to beat in a debate?

 

[Job]

Unlucky to hit tree...most accidents like that end up in a fence or hedge...really gives you a fright when you hit something that hard, the huge crunching bang reminds you about momentum.

 

[Access Denied]

Unlucky to hit tree...most accidents like that end up in a fence or hedge...really gives you a fright when you hit something that hard, the huge crunching bang reminds you about momentum.

If I'd gone a couple of metres further then it would've been bushes. It was the last tree for about 50 yards.

@Tom I've driven that road many times in all weathers. I've been guilty of going round that bend a bit quick when I'm on my own but I don't take stupid risks when I've got passengers in the car. I considered I was going a safe speed. Even the police said that once it aquaplaned there wasn't much I could do.

Doesn't make me feel any less responsible of course because I was driving.

 

[old.Tohtori]

Great that you're alright and as others have said; all's well that ends well.

ANtural to feel responsible, but don't dwell on it, should pass along with the shock of it.

 

[~Yuckfou~]

Was this in the countryside? Around here there is often mud on the road from the tractors. Also being on a bend there is a possibility of diesel spillage. Go back and have a look in case the cops get arsey.

 

[Billargh]

Someone you might be able to beat in a debate?

I'm too apathetic to debate anything with people online

 

[Access Denied]

It was on a country lane. No lights and right near a brickworks. Just had a phone call off a mate. Apprently there's been another accident on that little stretch this morning. I'm going to go back tomorrow and take photo's of the road surface and the condition of any drains.

 

[Tom]

I considered I was going a safe speed. Even the police said that once it aquaplaned there wasn't much I could do.

I think then you need to re-evaluate what you think is a safe speed. The key to not losing control by aquaplaning is not to aquaplane in the first place, and the easiest way to do that is to slow down in advance of standing water. If you didn't see the standing water then you either weren't paying attention, or were driving too fast for the conditions. The next easiest way is to ensure your tyres have enough tread depth. Skidpans are good for learning how to deal with a loss of control.

Again, I'm not having a go, I'm just offering my opinion as to what went wrong and how you may avoid it in future.

How many mm tread do you have on your rear tyres?

 

[Access Denied]

I think then you need to re-evaluate what you think is a safe speed. The key to not losing control by aquaplaning is not to aquaplane in the first place, and the easiest way to do that is to slow down in advance of standing water. If you didn't see the standing water then you either weren't paying attention, or were driving too fast for the conditions. The next easiest way is to ensure your tyres have enough tread depth. Skidpans are good for learning how to deal with a loss of control.

Again, I'm not having a go, I'm just offering my opinion as to what went wrong and how you may avoid it in future.

How many mm tread do you have on your rear tyres?

It was pitch black and I was coming off a sharp, blind bend. I got through the bend just fine. All four tyres were fine. Brand new in August. Police checked them out and were perfectly happy with them. You could possibly be right about going too fast. The only thing I can say to that is that I was driving as quickly as my experience of that road (In all weathers) tells me. In fact I was going slower than I would on my own. The police said there was some disturbance of the back up near the bend. I know I didn't hit that bank so maybe I caught some mud.

 

[~Yuckfou~]

I'm Sherlock me, just sayin'

 

[Tom]

You could possibly be right about going too fast.

Barring mechanical failure you were obviously going too fast.

 

[Moriath]

Barring mechanical failure you were obviously going too fast.

Your so self righteous @Tom. Give the guy a break. Sometimes you just don't see things in time.

I know police don't call things accidents any more cause theirs always a reason why it happened. But you keep rubbing it in. I'm sure he feels bad enough already.

 

[Tom]

Your so self righteous @Tom. Give the guy a break. Sometimes you just don't see things in time.

I know police don't call things accidents any more cause theirs always a reason why it happened. But you keep rubbing it in. I'm sure he feels bad enough already.

I've repeatedly said that I'm not having a go at anyone and was trying to help. But if you think that personal insults help then feel free to continue, because I won't be reading your posts. In fact, having said "sometimes you just don't see things in time" proves to anyone with an ounce of sense that you don't know what you're talking about.

Road safety is a serious issue, shrugging your shoulders and saying "shit happens" means that nothing will be learnt and that more accidents are assured.

 

[Moriath]

I've repeatedly said that I'm not having a go at anyone and was trying to help. But if you think that personal insults help then feel free to continue, because I won't be reading your posts.

Road safety is a serious issue, shrugging your shoulders and saying "shit happens" means that nothing will be learnt and that more accidents are assured.

Telling someone your not having a go but. Is like saying I don't mean to insult you but. Just saying your posts have come across very negatively towards the poor guy even with your get out of jail free statement.

I said that you seemed self righteous. Not really an insult that.

 

[Deebs]

I've repeatedly said that I'm not having a go at anyone and was trying to help. But if you think that personal insults help then feel free to continue, because I won't be reading your posts. In fact, having said "sometimes you just don't see things in time" proves to anyone with an ounce of sense that you don't know what you're talking about.

Road safety is a serious issue, shrugging your shoulders and saying "shit happens" means that nothing will be learnt and that more accidents are assured.

Road safety is a serious issue but sometimes you just cannot avoid accidents. The unknowns that can happen on a road are far too many to mention. How many times have you been

• driving along a road and suddenly you hit ice with no warning? (me at least twice, I was lucky, the whole road was shut 10 minutes later for safety reasons)
• driving along a major A road at the suggested speed limit and suddenly (on a dry day) you hit water and skate? (me, at least once)
• driving along the M25 at a nice 62mph alongside a lorry which then suddenly decides to veer into your lane? (god so many times)

The point is that no matter how safe you are you cannot predict or drive to the conditions presented to you. Since I have been driving I have averaged around 16 thousand miles per year (30 years give or take), yes I am aware of others, and the road conditions but sometimes that is not enough. The other day I was on my way to work going around a roundabout at 20 miles an hour and hit an oil patch, car slid, could I have avoided that, sure, if I was walking on the path watching all the car owners sliding.

 

[Raven]

Everyone should know by now @Tom considers himself an infallible god and everyone else is wrong, all the time.

 

[Tom]

driving along a road and suddenly you hit ice with no warning? (me at least twice, I was lucky, the whole road was shut 10 minutes later for safety reasons)

Never, since roads only ever become icy at low temperatures, when damp or wet. If you unexpectedly hit ice then you've failed to pay attention to the conditions.

driving along a major A road at the suggested speed limit and suddenly (on a dry day) you hit water and skate? (me, at least once)

The speed limit is not an indication of a safe speed. Ever. And if you failed to see water in the road on a dry day then you were either driving far too quickly, or not paying attention - even at night.

driving along the M25 at a nice 62mph alongside a lorry which then suddenly decides to veer into your lane? (god so many times)

This also would not be an accident, since the driver of a lorry who suddenly decides to veer into your lane would be guilty of exactly the same lapse of judgement shown in the OP.

The point is that no matter how safe you are you cannot predict or drive to the conditions presented to you.

Yes, you can. The only uncontrollable variable is other road users.

It's rather sad that people seem to accept road traffic collisions as inevitable when the vast majority of them are entirely avoidable.