[thehelmetguy]

This is my first post and I am truly humbled to be a part of this community. So introductions first, I am a 25 year old and one day I want to build something that the world wants. I want to build a business based on ethics and principles that can contribute something positive to the world, I wish to create my place in this world. I want to embrace courage in its truest form and believe that something positive will come at the end of the tunnel. I see myself as "Potential", a blank page in which a story is about to be written.

Coming back to the main topic, last year my family bought a Tata Nexon. It was our first car and I had childlike excitement, I literally left no stone unturned while researching about the car and made sure it meets our requirements before finalising it. Back then I didn't even know how to drive but I was thrilled by the idea of having a new car and was truly happy when it finally arrived. I felt grateful to have such a beautiful piece of machinery in my garage and whenever I passed by my car I used to admire it. Little did I know it was the beginning of a new journey.

I wanted to become a good driver, because I knew very well that "Driving is a responsibility and not a right". I enrolled myself at a driving school but I couldn't learn anything other than the location of ABC pedals and Gears and a bit of steering control but I still got my driver's license. I was in no way ready for the Indian roads and the idea of driving a brand new car was still very intimidating. I wanted to drive but I didn't know what to do.

I told my girlfriend about the same, she is my partner in every crime and she didn't know anything about driving either. But I am very much relaxed when I am with her, I am less worried and far more confident. So slowly we started practicing a lot, we used to drive early mornings and in the underground parking lot. Finally I got a hang of my car and I felt confident enough to start hitting the roads in peak traffic hours, now I could sense the control I had on my car and I could really appreciate the driving dynamics of my car. In the coming few days we explored the entire city, I was truly happy and used to grin like a child whenever I used to drive, all these beautiful experiences were created by my Nexon so I wanted to treat my car well. I made it a point to follow every driving rule and remember every route that I drive on, as I said earlier I wanted to become a "Good Driver".

The Incident

A month back on April 25,2022. Something happened that literally shook me, it was a Sunday evening and I was driving with my girlfriend on one of the beautiful roads of my city averaging at a speed of 60km/hr. All of a sudden a biker with a female pillion decided to go across the road so as to take a cut without even seeing the rear view mirror. The biker was a young lad and I don't know why he decided to take such a risk when the speed of traffic was very high. It was an extremely insensible move and I knew it could result in something bad. The biker was going across from left to right and I was in the rightmost lane. Whenever something like this happens with me, I give the other person a chance to correct their mistake, I believe that there will be people on the road that will make mistakes, not everybody knows how to operate their vehicle properly, everybody will learn someday. Also i was very well aware about what would happen if he gets hit by a car at such a speed.

So it was a similar situation that day. I slowed down my vehicle and honked allowing him to pass. And then the worst possible thing that could have happened that day happened with me, the biker could have easily made the cut but I don't know again what got into his head that he stopped his bike in front of my car. And now I had to come to a complete stop on a high speed road. Seconds later, a truck came and hit the backside of my car. We were not hurt as both of us were wearing seat belts and thanks to the build quality of the car, we felt nothing more than a bump but the backside of the car was damaged. Both the truck driver and the biker ran away from the spot.



Everything happened so quick that I didn't even have the chance to process it, a traffic cop was standing near us, he saw everything but did nothing. All he said was go to the nearest police station and report it. When asked if he could call someone there and explain to them the incident or give us his contact number because he was an eye witness of the accident, he simply refused. We went to the station mentioned by him and they send us to another station saying the area where the accident happened doesn't come under their jurisdiction. I was in no position to drive, tears were rolling down my eyes but still we went to the other station and there to my surprise they said the original station only had the jurisdiction (clearly lack of empathy on the part of the officers, I was with a female and just had an accident but they were least concerned). Now again I went to the police station where I had gone initially, finally I met a nice traffic cop. He listened to our story, and asked me what I wanted to do. I did not file a case because I couldn't see the value in it. He gave us a "Panchnama", MCR-Motor vehicle Collision Report and then we left the station.

On the journey back, I could not understand what had just happened. The simple question that came to my mind was "Why me?" I was at a controlled speed, in my lane, not doing anything stupid. Why it had to happen, my heart sank a little. There was no way I could avoid it. There was a probability that I could have saved my car if I had not slowed down but things could have taken a bad shape, I might have hit the biker because if somebody is coming across the road, there is simply no way to judge their speed and decide whether you will be able to pass the vehicle or not. If one is lucky, one might do it but if the luck runs out, a deadly accident is waiting.

I dropped my girlfriend, came home parked my vehicle and informed my parents. The next morning I took the car to authorized service center since it was a new car, it had zero dep insurance cover from HDFC ERGO so I only had to pay for the file charges and some consumables. My experience with Tata ASS was nice and the claim process was very smooth. The car was back in a few days and hardly any sign of damage was noticeable. Still whenever I think of that evening, it makes me sad.

So what did I learn from this accident ?

1) Don't drive after an accident, call your friends, family, relatives or any other driver but don't drive yourself because the thoughts after the accident can seriously impair your judgement on the road. Get yourself back to safety first.

2) Install a dash cam, a video footage can be really important in case of an accident.

3) Keep a valid insurance otherwise the repair bills in an accident can seriously burn your pocket.

4) Don't give up on driving, one doesn't give up on things they enjoy doing

Since this is my first post, kindly correct me if I make any mistake unknowingly. Looking forward for future interactions. Till then drive safe, wear a seat belt and as "TheHelmetGuy" says wear a helmet when you are on a two wheeler.

[VaibhavShatna95]

This is nothing bro. By god's grace I do not see much damage. Just claim insurance, hope you have 0 dep. Part and parcel of life, I can relate with you since I am of a similar age group. Shit happens on Indian roadways.

Even if you would have caught one of them, at max if they were good you could have claimed on their 3rd party insurance, but the police would still haggle out some money from you and it is just not wasting your time over these things.

[Pigcee]

I can totally relate to you buddy!

My altroz met with a minor accident a few months ago. A 15 year old kid on a scooter darted from a side road and didn't even flinch and went crashing down infront of me after hitting my bumper. He had no business riding that scooter at that age without a helmet. Thankfully he wasn't injured and I decided to let him go with a warning since his scooter had some damage too.Usually they see guys our age driving and blame it on us irrespective of who's mistake it was. But thankfully the passersby helped me out. I got it repaired out of my own pocket and called it a day. Haunted me for sometime but it's just a part of driving.

Wishing you happy miles and safe driving!

[Maverick5490]

Don't lose heart, learn from the incident and move ON. Next thing you need to develop is to be defensive in your driving methods, protect your space expecting the worst.

There are a lot of beautiful roads to explore, drive safe!

[chaitanyakrish]

I was in a similar situation yesterday in Bangalore. Unfortunately, I didn't put memory card in dashcam,so can't show the video . But here is what happened.

I was in the fast lane, waiting to turn right at the signal. There was a bus stop and some pedestrians got down and trying to cross the road, There is a Zebra Crossing few feet away and they're not using it.

There's a truck behind me, who is unaware that a pedestrian is on road, and is in a hurry and honking violently and coming too close and forcing me overtake the bus so that he can squeeze through that gap in middle lane.

I waited for the pedestrian to cross and then took my right turn. But, those few seconds, he was very close.

Picture depicting the scene is attached below.

[Rehaan]

Originally Posted by thehelmetguy

I slowed down my vehicle and honked allowing him to pass. And then the worst possible thing that could have happened that day happened with me, the biker could have easily made the cut but I don't know again what got into his head that he stopped his bike in front of my car.

Another thing to understand is that vehicular communication is totally dehumanized & non-verbal.

The same way as you sometimes can't understand a person's tone over SMS, the same applies for honking, braking, cutting lanes, etc.... except it's one level further removed since words aren't even exchanged.

You might honk meaning "You're going to injure yourself! Please take care", but it can easily be interpreted as "Get the hell out of my way you idiot". There's generally a threshold (I'd say a length of ~1.5 seconds) after which a warning honk becomes an aggression honk.

So you really need to be a bit extra careful about how you vehicularly express yourself, especially since there are a lot of hot-headed idiots on the roads.

[ssjr0498]

Originally Posted by thehelmetguy

So what did I learn from this accident ?

So sorry to hear about your horrid experience, glad that you guys are safe!!

But one more point to learn here

5. DO NOT put those crashbars or bumper guards (as seen in the rear of your car) or whatever that are forcibly clamped onto the chassis at different points. They are detrimental from a safety aspect and can be very dangerous to the structural integrity of the car in an event like your's.

My two cents!

[TSEA]

Originally Posted by thehelmetguy

On the journey back, I could not understand what had just happened. The simple question that came to my mind was "Why me?"...

It's indeed unfortunate that it happened. I have started to believe that there are two kinds of drivers on the road, One that have had an accident in past, and One that will have an accident!

[torquecurve]

You had your first accident...glad that you were in a safe car that took the impact. We all, I am sure have had our share of 'first accident' stories to share. Defensive driving is what kept you safe!
Take heart in the fact that you don't have to live with the guilt if there was some more damage to the car/ person or any of you. Keep driving!

P.S. Please remove the rear metal guard(and also the front on in case you have it), in such accidents it can seriously damage the chassis (esp. in monocoque vehicles) and makes the crumple zones as good as useless.

[Small Bot]

Originally Posted by ssjr0498

5. DO NOT put those crashbars or bumper guards (as seen in the rear of your car) or whatever that are forcibly clamped onto the chassis at different points. They are detrimental from a safety aspect and can be very dangerous to the structural integrity of the car in an event like your's.

In addition to those valid points, I'm sure crash guards are actually illegal and punishable by a fine in most parts of India. Whatever the perceived safety those contraptions might have, I'd advise to please take them off.

I also remember reading somewhere that there is more damage caused to your vehicle when there's a crash guard between both crashing vehicles. Something about crumple zones not working as intended.

[SS-Traveller]

I am afraid I am unable to understand what the remorse, sadness and brouhaha is all about - after all, this was a slow speed rear-end shunt, partly caused by your brake-checking a heavy vehicle without being situationally aware of what's behind you.

Originally Posted by thehelmetguy

...now I had to come to a complete stop on a high speed road. Seconds later, a truck came and hit the backside of my car.

In most cases, the vehicle that gets hit from the rear has the lesser quantum of blame if at all, and that's true for you too - so why would you want to be so upset about the accident? You are an absolute newbie driver by your own admission, so some scratches and dents are inevitable in a congested city like Kolkata, and there's your zero-dep insurance to prevent substantial monetary loss.

I am glad to see that you mention...

I was in no way ready for the Indian roads and the idea of driving a brand new car was still very intimidating. I wanted to drive but I didn't know what to do.

...because lack of confidence causes crashes of lesser intensity, than overconfidence in one's ability to drive. However, since you write...

I give the other person a chance to correct their mistake, I believe that there will be people on the road that will make mistakes, not everybody knows how to operate their vehicle properly, everybody will learn someday.

...roads and driving are not situations that need your charity, the primary focus should be on keeping yourself safe. Elsewhere, on this forum, the need to maintain what is called a CAS, or crash avoidance space, has been mentioned - you can search for the same and read about it.

As to what you think you learnt from that accident, I think a few of your learnings are fallacious.

1) Don't drive after an accident, call your friends, family, relatives or any other driver but don't drive yourself because the thoughts after the accident can seriously impair your judgement on the road. Get yourself back to safety first.

If your car is in safe running condition, do drive. There is no reason to brood over the accident and trying to determine whose fault it was, trying to analyse things, etc. If you haven't been injured, or been involved in any life-threatening or legal situation, move on with your vehicle and your life. Yet you say...

I was in no position to drive, tears were rolling down my eyes...

I wonder why you would have been crying - was it because of the loss of face before your girlfriend, or the fear of your parents' reaction when they learn of the damage to the vehicle?

2) Install a dash cam, a video footage can be really important in case of an accident.

By all means, do it. Install a system with both forward and rear facing cameras, or two separate cameras. But a camera does not ensure your safety. However, do post the videos here, learn to accept the ensuing constructive criticism, and learn from such criticism to be a better driver.

4) Don't give up on driving, one doesn't give up on things they enjoy doing

But learn from your own mistakes! In this case, learn to use your rear view mirrors, and be situationally aware of what's behind you as well as what is happening ahead.

Safe driving!

[RijuC]

I have a question. You were in the rightmost lane. And the road was a high speed road in Kolkata, and I presume that high speed road (where you can drive at a speed of 60 kmph) will have a road divider, if you were not in Maidan area.

Your Nexon was hit at the right side. Then how the truck could escape from that accident spot? If there was a road divider, the truck cannot hit the right side of your car and escape from right side so easily, unless there was an open space or no road divider.

Anyway, thanks to good build quality of Nexon, and with seat belts on, you were safe. Install a good quality dual channel (front and rear) dashcam powdered by supercapacitor (mine is with supercapacitor and it is doing good even after getting baked under the sun and heat of Gurgaon at 48-49 deg C for 9 hours) and get it hardwired connected for peace of mind and police complaint/ insurance claim support etc. And continue enjoying the long drives in your car.

[lsjey]

Originally Posted by thehelmetguy

2) Install a dash cam, a video footage can be really important in case of an accident.

Sorry to hear about your ordeal. Your learnings are sensible. Thanks for sharing

When it comes to dashcam, please don't install just one dashcam, but at least two, one forward facing and in the rear. Better to get a two channel dashcam. I have only one dashcam and I keep reminding myself to upgrade.

Regards,
lsjey

[shresan23]

Sorry to hear about your experience.

I'm telling you, this was the best option you could have taken under the circumstances. No harm to any individual as such. Now, I am no expert in driving, but as far as I could imagine the situation, nothing much is left to do.

Maybe if there was enough gap, you could have manoeuvred to the left lane. But this is a big IF.

About the policemen, I've been treated somewhat similarly or sometimes hilariously.

I have an EV that looks odd. So, policemen in between their checking and challan issuing rounds, stop me as if I have committed a crime. They ask me to wait for a few minutes until the crowd is thin. And then they ask me questions about the vehicle. This is particularly infuriating as I would often be on my way to college.

Yesterday, I was stopped for honest reasons, but after realising that I made no mistake, he proceeded to ask me about the parcel I was taking home. It was some food from a nearby shop and he asked me about the quality, eligibility for children and family etc.

This may not be exactly related to the topic at hand, but I thought I could throw some insight into the attitude of the policemen nowadays.

[thehelmetguy]

Thanks for informing me about this, I thought honking was used to make the other person aware of my presence. Glad that you have corrected me