Just in case people were wondering, "Wow, this recent turn of positive events for Chris and Anna Maria has us curious -- I didn't think they had that kind of luck!" -- the universe righted those wrongs last weekend.
Driving home on Friday, from work, I was looking forward to my weekend. A friend was coming out on Friday evening to hang out; Saturday, we had a slew of things going on, and Sunday, we had more visitors coming to see Nicolo. My mother-in-law was visiting, as well; so the weekend was chock full o' stuff.
I left work slightly later than I usually do -- one of those things you look back on, wistfully, and think, "if only...". I take mostly back roads, avoiding highways wherever possible; primarily because I don't like dealing with most drivers.
I turned onto the main road (Rte. 25) from a side street (Beverly Road). There was one car ahead of me, and one truck behind me. We entered Jericho Turnpike (Rte. 25) with no one in front of us.
Approximately 400 feet away, was another street (Longfellow). As we approached Longfellow (with the car ahead of me in the left lane; and the truck, behind me, in the right lane, there was a grey Suzuki in the turning lane, ready to turn on to Longfellow.
Only, the car didn't turn. Instead, it stayed in the turning lane and drove (slowly) through the intersection, then, began drifting into the left lane of the main road (having passed Longfellow already). The car in front of me honked angrily and sped off. The grey Suzuki didn't even jerk back; but just kept coming over, and planted itself directly in front of me; doing approximately 5 mph.
And then, it parked.
I don't mean it came to a stop; it didn't slow down. It literally completely stopped moving, with no brake lights or any indication. Before I could even react (since it had entered the road just a few feet ahead of me), I had collided with it. Thankfully, I was only doing about 15-20 mpg (since I'd had to slow down when I saw the car begin drifting over, earlier). My car took all of the damage, completely destroying the front end of my vehicle. The Suzuki took nearly no damage; just losing its rear bumper.
I leaped out of my car, irate, and stormed over to the other vehicle. All of the occupants were easily under 25 years of age.The male driver barely looked at me; while the female in the passenger seat screamed at him. The female in the back seat (pregnant) left the car and began speaking with me. Both females eventually left the car and were extremely apologetic. Apparently, the car had not been driving correctly -- it had shifted in and out of gear three times, and, the car had mysteriously shifted into "park" while they were driving. I asked/begged why they hadn't left the main road and turned down a side road. They continued apologizing, asking if they could call anyone, did I need a ride anywhere. While I was speaking with both ladies, the male tried to move the car, but my car was still hitched on his bumper, and it wasn't safe to try to move out of the lane. I screamed to him "Dude, stop!"
The pregnant lady told me her name was Katie, an she was the only under-25 year old redhead that worked at the Hauppauge DMV, and if I ever needed anything -- even something unrelated to this incident -- I should feel free to contact her.
I calmed, realizing that they were taking the blame (rightfully) for the accident; and I awaited the police arrival. Here is where things get concerning for me.
When the police arrived, myself and the other driver were obviously in our respective cars. We both filled out our police reports/statements. The officer ran checks, etc., I needed a tow truck for my vehicle. At that point, I saw the guy trying to pry the bumper off his car, and I went to the police officer. I explained that they had explained the reason for the accident was that their car wasn't driving properly; and, obviously, they should not be driving away from the scene (of an accident they caused, no less!) She checked their rear window wiper and brake lights (both of which worked -- as I'd said, my car took the damage), but she did not check the driving functionality of the vehicle.
The female that had been sitting in the front seat drove the vehicle away. I realized, after speaking with the officer, that they had said the *female* had been driving (not the pregnant one, but the other one). This got me worried; although, I'm not sure why.
Clearly, they had something to hide -- why else to state that someone other than the driver was actually driving the vehicle. Perhaps the male had a revoked or suspended license; or maybe he'd already had a few accidents (or, maybe he had no license) - whatever the reason, there's obviously some reason why they told the police someone else was driving the vehicle.
On the other hand, let's say this is an insurance scheme -- and the male has already been a part of a few accidents. Rather than draw attention to themselves (by having the same driver hit several times), they spread it around. It sounds crazy, sure; but there are crazy people in the world. It's also equally crazy to be driving a vehicle that shifts in and out of gear; to drive through an intersection in a turning lane; to illegally merge into a left lane of a highway; and to park your vehicle on the highway. In that context, the premise isn't so ridiculous.
So, now I wait. I wait to hear what will happen with my car (I suppose it could be totaled, there was enough damage), and everything is done on a far slower timetable than I would like (the appraisal won't even be done for a few days; and then insurance has to evaluate the feasibility of the repairs, etc.) If it *is* to be repaired, then there's probably a week's worth of work. All the while, I'll be in a far-too-small rental car (because my insurance company actually includes -- as standard -- a rental car rider that no rental car qualifies for ($30 a day -- try finding a car on Long Island for $30 a day; it's impossible)).
I suppose I'll learn not to be too cocky -- I'd almost thought the bad part of 2011 was behind me, before this was forcibly tossed back in my face. Yes, it could be worse; I could've been hurt, or any of the three others could've been hurt. Instead, the impact was low-speed enough (their car didn't even move) and my car did what it was supposed to; crumpling around the core. No one needed an ambulance, and everyone was walking. It's just a huge inconvenience; but one that -- frustratingly -- should have been avoidable.
Monday, November 7, 2011
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4 comments:
In their police report, who did they say was the driver? Did they say it was one of the girls, and did you tell the cop the guy was driving, and I hope you put it in your report that he was driving. Yes, it could have been worse, and thank God you're ok. Take care buddy, Steve.
Were you in your Sonata? As much as I LOVED my Elantra, when I had my accident back in 2007, I was completely stopped in traffic on the LIE (Going to work at Super) a Landscaping truck got impatient and tried to pull around me, except there was no room for him to do so, he did it anyway. So he hit me from behind, probably going 5-10 MPH and then turned to the left, taking out the entire back section of my truck and my left rear quarter panel, my brake lights and half my bumper, all the while pushing me into the Ford Escape in front of me. Well, that car just crumpled. The hood, from just tapping the car in front of me, looked like I had just about slammed into a wall going 55 and the back of the car isn't even worth talking about. My car was totaled! There was over $7500 dollars worth of damage and the car was only worth $5500. I was just always so thankful I wasn't in a high speed crash with that car because I realize I probably wouldn't have survived. And talk about bad situations, the Landscaping truck took off without looking back. Luckily I got the plate number and when the police went to the landscaping company, the owner said the guy driving the truck said that I caused the accident by driving into him and then he just quit and left and the owner didn't know where he lived, so my insurance company had to cover it all. I love Hyundai, but I will never again own one because they just aren't sturdy! Good story and I am just glad you are ok!
That is one bizarre accident. I am sorry you have to deal with this. I hope everything resolves itself quickly.
@Debbie -- yes, I was in my Sonata. Actually, the cars are *very* sturdy. My car also looks like I'd slammed into a wall doing 55mph, and there's probably about $7k worth of damage. The car is worth about $15k, though, so it won't be totaled.
The car operates the way it's supposed to -- the 'chrome' crumples and protects the core (so, in fact, hitting a vehicle at 10-15 and hitting a vehicle at 40 doesn't look *much* different). It definitely looks worse (and costs more) than you would think.
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