So Sunday evening I had the pleasure of going with my youngest to a concert in which my friend's boyfriend was performing, along with Maria Lund and Timo Rautiainen and on the way home we decided to swing by the grocery store to get some food.
We were waiting to make a left turn because we didn't want to drive into a bus that would be driving past us in a few short seconds....my friend had the brakes on and the left turn indicator (blinker) on....we waited patiently - and suddenly BANG!
We were rear-ended by a fellow not paying attention. No really, he told my friends, "Sorry I didn't realize you were stopped."
(I guess a couple bright red brake lights and a bright yellow left flashing light wasn't obvious enough....ah well...accidents happen!)
And no, he wasn't young at all....AND he had his son with him in the front seat (about 8-10 years old I think). Both drivers got out and agreed to meet in the parking lot of the grocery store and by that point, people were driving around us (and the rear-ending offender) and the bus had driven by.
(Air bags didn't go off in either car).
We got into the parking lot - my friend M was really upset and I was in adrenaline-based shock...and my 1 month old (who had turned 1-month that day actually) was asleep.
Thankfully the damage to both vehicles was minimal (yes the pieces that need to be fixed and re-painted will cost an arm and a leg) - both vehicles were drivable and nobody was seriously hurt.
My neck and shoulder was a little sore that night, but that could be due to carrying the baby for a 2 hour-long concert...and those Baby Bj�rn carriers aren't all that comfortable with an 11+ lbs baby! (5kg+)!!
The other driver rushed over to us and asked how we were doing and apologized a lot in Finnish and Swedish....or maybe it was English...
"Sorry" sounds quite similar in Swedish by the way....
My friend M and I went to get groceries with the sleeping baby and the guys began to inspect their cars.
I don't know if it's mandatory or not - but my friend's boyfriend had a document in his glove compartment in case of an accident....so I don't know if all Finnish drivers have to have this paper work on hand at all times or not...but anyway - I continue...(If I find out the answer - I'll update this post accordingly).
The guys came in to K Market and filled out their forms and there was a grid near the bottom of the sheet where you can draw how the accident occurred. (It was clearly obvious we were not the guilty party that caused the accident).
So because I was involved - my contact information was also jotted down.
Then from my understanding, my friend M said they would take their car to be inspected to see how much work needs to be done to repair it - and then they send the claim to the guilty party's insurance.
A fairly smooth process (despite the bumps and scares) if you ignore the waiting time to get your car looked at!
*No police or paramedics were called to the scene because it was a very minor accident and nobody was bleeding or in severe pains*.
In Canada (at least in Nova Scotia), if there's a car accident - you cannot drive to another location (unless you're smack-dab in the center of a highway and occupying the whole space - even then you should probably stay put until police get there)...and you don't carry accident claim papers with you either.
You call the police and paramedics (911) if it's severe enough and your insurance company as well. Damage on YOUR vehicle goes through YOUR insurance...I don't know if you can put claims through another person's insurance - I doubt it.
Although, I'm pretty sure you can take the guilty party to court (and claim compensation of some sort) if enough damage was caused and they were under the influence of alcohol or drugs...
Now that it's been 4 days - I feel fine - a little stiff here and there but probably due to having a newborn and lack of sleep!....I'm very lucky and I'm assuming my baby is fine too - as he's just peachy as can be any time of the day (once he is fed)....
It could always be worse! And we were very lucky that there wasn't any ice (that was the next day) and nobody rear ended the fellow that hit us!
We were waiting to make a left turn because we didn't want to drive into a bus that would be driving past us in a few short seconds....my friend had the brakes on and the left turn indicator (blinker) on....we waited patiently - and suddenly BANG!
We were rear-ended by a fellow not paying attention. No really, he told my friends, "Sorry I didn't realize you were stopped."
(I guess a couple bright red brake lights and a bright yellow left flashing light wasn't obvious enough....ah well...accidents happen!)
And no, he wasn't young at all....AND he had his son with him in the front seat (about 8-10 years old I think). Both drivers got out and agreed to meet in the parking lot of the grocery store and by that point, people were driving around us (and the rear-ending offender) and the bus had driven by.
(Air bags didn't go off in either car).
We got into the parking lot - my friend M was really upset and I was in adrenaline-based shock...and my 1 month old (who had turned 1-month that day actually) was asleep.
Thankfully the damage to both vehicles was minimal (yes the pieces that need to be fixed and re-painted will cost an arm and a leg) - both vehicles were drivable and nobody was seriously hurt.
My neck and shoulder was a little sore that night, but that could be due to carrying the baby for a 2 hour-long concert...and those Baby Bj�rn carriers aren't all that comfortable with an 11+ lbs baby! (5kg+)!!
The other driver rushed over to us and asked how we were doing and apologized a lot in Finnish and Swedish....or maybe it was English...
"Sorry" sounds quite similar in Swedish by the way....
My friend M and I went to get groceries with the sleeping baby and the guys began to inspect their cars.
I don't know if it's mandatory or not - but my friend's boyfriend had a document in his glove compartment in case of an accident....so I don't know if all Finnish drivers have to have this paper work on hand at all times or not...but anyway - I continue...(If I find out the answer - I'll update this post accordingly).
The guys came in to K Market and filled out their forms and there was a grid near the bottom of the sheet where you can draw how the accident occurred. (It was clearly obvious we were not the guilty party that caused the accident).
So because I was involved - my contact information was also jotted down.
Then from my understanding, my friend M said they would take their car to be inspected to see how much work needs to be done to repair it - and then they send the claim to the guilty party's insurance.
A fairly smooth process (despite the bumps and scares) if you ignore the waiting time to get your car looked at!
*No police or paramedics were called to the scene because it was a very minor accident and nobody was bleeding or in severe pains*.
In Canada (at least in Nova Scotia), if there's a car accident - you cannot drive to another location (unless you're smack-dab in the center of a highway and occupying the whole space - even then you should probably stay put until police get there)...and you don't carry accident claim papers with you either.
You call the police and paramedics (911) if it's severe enough and your insurance company as well. Damage on YOUR vehicle goes through YOUR insurance...I don't know if you can put claims through another person's insurance - I doubt it.
Although, I'm pretty sure you can take the guilty party to court (and claim compensation of some sort) if enough damage was caused and they were under the influence of alcohol or drugs...
Now that it's been 4 days - I feel fine - a little stiff here and there but probably due to having a newborn and lack of sleep!....I'm very lucky and I'm assuming my baby is fine too - as he's just peachy as can be any time of the day (once he is fed)....
It could always be worse! And we were very lucky that there wasn't any ice (that was the next day) and nobody rear ended the fellow that hit us!
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.