A Car Accident Cheung Chiu Shan

Before he left, he apologized for the accident.......

Today is not a good day for me. This morning my car was hit by another car.            After I had pulled out of the parking space in the library parking lot, a pickup truck parked in another parking space right across from mine hit my car in the rear end. Before I pulled out of the parking space, I turned my head to look back to assure that there was no car behind me. While I do not depend solely on my vehicle's backup sensors, they detected no moving object behind my car.            The left rear end of my Toyota RAV 4 was severely damaged, but the other car, a '98 Ford Ranger, sustained no damage at all.            As I felt the impact of the collision, I turned my head and saw a driver driving his truck back into a parking space.

I pulled into my parking space, then got out of the car. The driver of the pickup truck came over to me. The driver, an elderly man, said that he did not see my car. "Usually I look at both mirrors before I back out of the parking space. Somehow I just looked at one mirror this time." The driver said.            As I looked at the slip of paper showing the driver's auto insurance. I was glad that we both insured our cars through the same insurance company. I thought it would take less time to settle the matter.

I got the driver's name, address, his car license number, his auto insurance policy number and vehicle identification number. The driver got the same pertinent information from me. Before he left, he apologized for the accident.            When I arrived home, I looked at the left rear end of my car. Part of the rear door was damaged. The left rear bumper was cracked. I noticed that the rear bumper was made of plastic. I wondered why Toyota did not produce a bumper tough enough so that it would not be cracked.            On a day that I needed my camera the most, I forgot to bring it with me. I didn't report the accident to the police as no one was hurt. I called my insurance company and gave the agent detailed information on the accident. The driver seemed like a decent man who acknowledged that he was to blame. I just hope he doesn't change his story later though.

I really don't like to drive. Life would be less complicated if I could avoid the stress of driving. I would walk to the library from now on. But on second thought, I should continue to drive sometimes on other occasions. The less I drive, the less comfortable I'll be driving. I need to keep my driving skills up and not let them get rusty. And I need to remain as self-sufficient as possible in case one day I become the person my family depends on for driving in rain, in the dark or to the emergency room.

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