Section 172 help needed please!!!!

missymoomoo

I am in an awful predicament and really don' t know what to do. Back in April I had a party for some friends who were going away travelling. There were about 30 people there - some of whom I knew better than others. The party went well and I had a great time.
Until….3 days later I received a letter from my insurance company telling me that on the Friday (day of the party) my car had been involved in a car park collosion and that the driver had driven off! I couldn't believe this so rushed out to my car and saw that there was some small damage to my front bumper! I didn't drive my car that night of the party so know it wasn't me and have come to the conclusion that someone else at the party had taken my keys without my knowledge (they were left on my key rack) and bumped it!!!
I couldn't believe that this was happening to me and also felt so bad that someone who was at my house and acting as a supposed 'friend' could actually do this to me! I rang all my friends round and everyone was really shocked but no one has 'come forward' to say it was them.
So I rang the insurance company and explained all this. I told them that I was absolutely mortified that this has happened and that the only thing that I could do to put this right was to offer to pay for the damage to the other car!! The insurance were happy with this and said that they would negoitate on my behalf and get back to me. The damage to my car was £120 and the mechanic said it looked like a bumper to bumper car park knock .
I haven't heard anything further until last week when I received a Section 172 notice form from the police asking me to declare who the driver was! I am so worried and don't know what to do as I have never been in trouble before with the police. I have people who can confirm I was at my house all night and I have tried to put this right by offering to pay for the other party.
How should I reply to this notice and what do you think the outcome will be?

Thanks firstly for reading the novel above and secondly for any help you knowledgable people can give me!

elite_2

Not an expert by any stretch of the imagination.....

You could have denied all knowledge to the insurance company in the first place (someone did that after hitting me - no witnesses so the police couldn't do anything)

Speak to the police and explain that you have tried to resolve this through the insurers, (ask the insurers to confirm it in writing if they haven't all ready)

missymoomoo

Thanks Elite for your help!

Conor_3

Explaining that you've tried to resolvbe it through the insurers is irrelevent as the Section 172 is about saying who was driving, not to do with the claim.

There is a defence to this offence, if on the basis that a number of people could have been driving at the time you provide the police with their details.


If you really do not know who was driving then you are likely to be summonsed to court. If you can show that despite using all due diligence you cannot ascertain who the driver was and the court is satisfied as to your explanation then you will be found not guilty.


It is not good enough to simply tell the police you do not know who was driving. You will have to give them an explanation and details of who it might be, even if that means a list of everyone who was at the party.


At the end of the day, the offence of not stopping at the scene of an accident has been committed which is points, fine and a large insurance renewal. Someone/CCTV has seen the car registration and reported it.