Police officers make insurance claims for car park collisions

After causing a vehicle accident, those responsible may see their car insurance premiums increase.

Although everyone makes mistakes, one police force has been criticised after causing 48 traffic accidents – in their own car parks.

Between 2011 and 2012, Staffordshire Police made 487 insurance claims, with 45 officers causing rear end collisions and 61 experiencing “errors of misjudgement” behind the wheel.

However, the number of traffic accidents involving Staffordshire Constabulary has actually declined since 2006 – where police officers made 787 claims.

Nigel Gunn, former Staffordshire Police Inspector, said parking facilities at sites like Stafford were never built for significant numbers of cars.

He said, “There's very limited space and a lot of vehicles trying to cram into that space. Most police stations are in town centres and surrounded by double yellow lines, so there is nowhere else to put them.

“The main scenarios are when someone is rushing to get out to a 999 call and just misjudges what can be quite tight spaces…police stations are not very well lit and it is more difficult at night. You also get tired people coming off long shifts.”

Thankfully, although accidents do occur, most police forces provide regular training and assessments in order to minimise collisions.  

Labels: car insurance, car parks, insurance company, rear end collisions, Stafford, Staffordshire Police