Poll: Nearly Half of All Drivers Who Hit Parked Cars Don’t Always Leave Notes

If your parked car gets dinged by another motorist in Portland, Ore., and you’re not there to witness it, there’s just a 50/50 chance that the responsible driver will leave a note with contact information. That’s according to the latest poll from PEMCO Insurance, which shows that 53 percent of drivers in Portland who hit parked cars say they always leave contact information, while 47 percent admit to leaving the scene without leaving a note.

But to the north in Washington, drivers who hit parked cars are significantly more likely to come clean, with two-thirds – 67 percent – reporting that they always leave their contact information if they’re responsible for the damage, the poll revealed.

Beyond hitting parked cars, most drivers in both states say they’ve been involved in an accident with another driver at least once in their lifetime. According to the poll, men are involved in significantly more car accidents than women, regardless of who’s at fault. Men in Washington are also more likely to take the blame for a car accident – 62 percent of Washington men report fault for at least one car accident, while 51 percent of women admit to being a fault at least once.

The poll also found that, in general, drivers claim to be at least partially at fault for car accidents about half the time.

“We don’t know what to make of the difference between answers from Portland and Washington drivers. Maybe that’s best left to psychologists,” said Jon Osterberg, PEMCO spokesperson.

In both Washington and Portland, any collision involving injuries must be reported to law enforcement. According to PEMCO’s poll, 56 percent of Washington drivers called 911 following their most recent accident, compared to 39 percent of Portland drivers who said they called 911. The poll shows that about half (52 percent) of Washington drivers said they filed a non-emergency accident report within a day of their last car accident while considerably more – 69 percent – of Portlanders said they did the same.

According to the PEMCO poll, just one-quarter of all drivers said they took pictures to document the situation the last time they were in an accident involving another driver. Taking a picture was more common among younger drivers. Nearly half (49 percent) of those under 35 in Washington, and 52 percent of those under 35 in Portland, said they took pictures the last time they were in an accident, the poll showed. PEMCO reminds people that smartphones now make this an easy task.

Drivers in Portland must immediately notify law enforcement of the accident if damages total more than $1,500, according to Oregon’s Department of Motor Vehicles. In Washington, drivers must notify the Washington State Patrol if vehicle damage exceeds $700 – but, according to WSP, drivers have up to three days to file a report.

To learn more about the PEMCO Insurance Northwest Poll and to view a summary of the results, visit www.pemco.com/poll, where the public is invited to participate in an informal version of the poll and see how their own responses compare with those collected by FBK Research of Seattle in October 2012.

Source: PEMCO Insurance