New research which studied car damage across the UK found that London drivers are more likely to ‘Hit & Run’ than drivers in other parts of the country.
Just 39% of London car owners said they would leave a note “no matter what” if they damaged another car without anyone witnessing it.
This is despite the fact that hitting a vehicle and not leaving your details is illegal under Section 170 of the Road Traffic Act.
This compares with an average of 52% of motorists across the UK, according to a survey of 2,000 UK car owners carried out by Nextbase Dash Cams.
In comparison, Scottish drivers and those in the South West were the most likely to leave a note to inform a car owner that they damaged their car.
Television personality and former UK Special Forces soldier Jason Fox said: “In my personal experience, car parks are the worst place to leave a car. There’s a lot of other cars and people who don’t care about other people’s property.”
“You can never be too cautious about your car when you leave it parked. Scratches, bangs, dents caused by other drivers, careless trolley users, vandals and thieves is what you are up against in safeguarding the look and value of one of your most expensive possessions.”
Percentage of people who selected “Yes, no matter what” when asked: “If you accidentally scratched or incurred minor damage on a parked car and nobody was around to witness it, would you leave a note?”
| South West | 62% |
| Scotland | 62% |
| Wales | 59% |
| East Anglia | 54% |
| North West | 53% |
| North East | 52% |
| UK-Wide | 52% |
| South East | 52% |
| Yorkshire | 50% |
| Midlands | 50% |
| Northern Ireland | 42% |
| London | 39% |
This may have something to do with London‘s younger population, as older drivers (and women) were far more likely to say they would always leave a note.
Proportion of people who selected “Yes, no matter what” when asked: “If you accidentally scratched or incurred minor damage on a parked car and nobody was around to witness it, would you leave a note?”
| 18-24 | 36% |
| 25-34 | 49% |
| 35-44 | 52% |
| 45-54 | 55% |
| 55+ | 58% |
National figures show a slender majority of the UK would always leave a note, while a relatively small 14% admit that they would definitely not do so.
If you accidentally scratched or incurred minor damage on a parked car and nobody was around to witness it, would you leave a note?
| No | 14% |
| Yes – but only if I had time and paper on hand | 34% |
| Yes, no matter what | 52% |
We know these dents are not as harmless as they might seem, as people judge those with dents on their car adversely. From the same survey:
When you see someone’s car has some cosmetic damage like a dent or large scratch unfixed, what does that tell you?
| They are careless | 39% |
| They are struggling financially | 34% |
| They are busy | 32% |
| They cannot be trusted | 15% |
And dents aren’t the worst of it – London was also the area with the most car crimes last year, and one of the lowest charge rates.
Of the 23,000 cases of car thefts, thefts from a car, and interference with a car reported to the Metropolitan Police last year, just 3.2% resulted in anyone being charged, according to Home Office data.
The data comes from a representative survey of 2000 motorists conducted by Research Without Barriers on behalf of British Dash Cam Firm Nextbase.
Featured image by why kei on Unsplash
