Should you or they apologize? It's not always so simple.

I was rear-ended when driving on the motorway. Fortunately I was too shocked to say much.

I thought I was at fault. May I was too slow, maybe I drifted into the other lane as a car was trying to overtake?

However, the driver of the truck which collected me and my vehicle told me that if the other car hit the back of mine, judging by the damage to the back of my vehicle, it was automatically their fault.

It is also a British, female and personality thing to apologise, even when somebody else steps on your toe.

Afterwards I read through my insurance document and found that it said that at the scene of an accident I should not admit guilt, nor apologise - which the other driver's insurance could take as an admission of guilt and refuse to pay to your insurance company - therefore that invalidate's your insurance and your insurance company will not pay you.

After I received physio for damage to my arm, I thought I was better and signed a document of release. However, I now find that my arm is in pain when carrying a bag.  I blamed the bag, the angle of carrying, all sorts of things. Then I remembered the damage to my arm in the accident.

When you spill somebody else's drink in a pub, it is agood idea to apologise and offer to pay for another drink, even if you think it's not your fault.

On the other hand, in a road traffic accident, your legal obligation is usually to provide your contact details and no more.

I was surprised to read online that you should get seen medically before contacting your insurance company and saying you were fit.

Be aware that at the scene of an accident you will often be asked to go for an immediate medical check. You could have a slow internal bleed and collapse later.

In one accident I had no surface injury and was in a state of shock. A bystander exulted that I had not a scratch on my, no blood, nothing.

Other poeple dashed up and asked how I was.

I said, "I'm fine, thank you."

Then somebody told me to get out of the car. When I tried to get out of the car and realised I could not move. My breathing was shallow and I had damage to ribs.

Websites
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7549699/Father-British-teen-run-killed-diplomats-wife-
https://www.hg.org/legal-articles/what-not-to-say-to-your-insurance-company-after-an-auto-accident-18067

About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share links to your favourite posts.

My Road Traffic Accident Survival

After a road traffic accident my car went from the slow lane and ended up hitting the central reservation and spinning to a stop. Debris from two vehicles was in the road. Traffic behind us stopped. Somebody ran over to ask if I was OK and help me out. I could not move. I could open the windows but the door on my side was jammed shut. I kept saying, 'Call the police, stop the traffic before another vehicle hits us.'

The driver of a lorry assured me, 'Somebody is phoning the police.'

He ran back to his vehicle. He had parked it diagonally across the motorway blocking all three lanes so nothing could hit the debris or the two stationary vehicles in the outside two lanes or us vulnerable pedestrians.

I've discussed this with other people several times since.

My first shock was the jolt and bang as my car was hit. The second was realising my car was out of control shooting into the fast lane. The third shock was hitting the central barrier. The fourth was rotating to a stop and realising I was stuck in the fast lane where fast moving vehicles would hit my car.

The next was realising that when I got out I would be stuck on the central reservation unable to cross to the hard shoulder. While waiting to be rescued, I had nothing wider than a kerbstone to stand on. Then last shock was realising I could not get out of the car door.

A lorry driver has a responsible job. He does many hours driving for a living. He has seen accidents before. He would either have had the initiative to think what to do. And/or he knew from experience of being jammed in narrow roads that when his vehicle is diagonally across a road nobody else can pass.

The helper suggested I get out of the passenger side so I did not have the steering wheel in the way. Then he realised I could move my seat back away from the wheel. I did that and made a huge space in front of the two front seats. He told me to turn the engine on and off to see if the car doors would operate. Somebody got the front passenger seat open. Then the man on my side got the back door on my side open. Then I pushed and the door my side opened. He helped me stand up. I was shaken and nervous but uninjured with not a scratch.

Then the driver of the other car appeared with blood on her face, asking anxiously was I all right. I thought that was very nice of her, as she was bloody and I wasn't. Of course she being in the car behind had seen my car shoot across the road. I had not seen her car at all.

It was not until we were escorted back to the hard shoulder that I saw the damage to her car a few yards behind mine.

My son, Anthony, said if she had braked I would have heard a squeal of brakes and seen skid marks on the road.

My car was steered to the hard shoulder to clear the road.
I said, "Let's take photos as evidence first."

We took photos.

By now the Road Traffic police has appeared and the traffic could be seen backing up for as far as I could see.