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Hit-and-run accidents rise in London (20 March 2014)

Date: 20/03/2014
Duncan Lewis, Legal News Solicitors, Hit-and-run accidents rise in London

Figures on hit-and-run accidents in London show that more people are dying or are being injured in hit-and-run accidents in the capital, despite a high-profile campaign targeting motorists driving uninsured.

The London Assembly Greens obtained the figures through a Freedom of Information request. The statistics revealed that in 2012, a total of 3,879 people were killed or injured in hit-and-run accidents, representing a 10% rise in the number killed or injured in the capital in 2011 – a total of 3,535.

Approximately 10 people are now killed or injured every day in London as a result of hit-and-run accidents.

The Motor Insurers’ Bureau says that around 1.4 million drivers are uninsured in London and this is one of the main reasons for the rise in hit-and-run road accidents in the capital.

Pedestrians account for 26% of those killed or injured as a result of hit-and-run road traffic accidents in London in 2012, while cyclists comprise 21% of those killed or injured.

A total of 360 people were seriously injured in hit-and-run road accidents in 2012, compared with 306 in 2011.

The number of those who sustained slight injuries in hit-and-run accidents also increased between 2011 and 2102 – rising from 3,215 in 2011 to 3,501 in 2012.

Operation Cubo was launched in 2011 by Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe. Under Operation Cubo, police target uninsured drivers and those who drive badly.

The number of cars police seized from uninsured drivers rose in 2012 from 32,000 annually in previous years to 38,279 in 2012. However, despite removing uninsured cars from London streets, the number of those killed or injured in hit-and-run road accidents continues to rise.

In 2012, a total of 131 people were killed on the capital’s road – including 15 in hit-and-run accidents – while 2,738 were seriously injured in road traffic accidents in London.

Leader of the London Assembly Greens Jenny Jones said that the Met had made progress in removing unlicensed cars and uninsured drivers from London’s roads – but she added that the continued rise in the number of hit-and-run road accidents which resulted in death or injury was “concerning”.

The London Borough of Newham had the highest number of hit-and-run accident victims in 2012, followed by Westminster, Hackney, Ealing and Tower Hamlets.

Road safety charity Brake called hit-and-run an “abhorrent crime” and called for tougher penalties for hit-and-run drivers. Ed Morrow said:

“Knocking someone down and leaving them for dead is an abhorrent crime – and yet the maximum penalty for hit-and-run remains woefully low.

“We need to make it clear that illegal and risky driving won’t be tolerated.”

Road safety campaigners have suggested that the increase in the number of hit-and-run accidents may be linked to the recession. The numbers have increased steadily since 2009 when the credit crunch took hold, suggesting more people may have failed to insure their vehicles because of the cost.

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Duncan Lewis crime lawyers can advise those charged with or facing charges for motoring offences, including hit-and-run road accidents, driving while uninsured, driving without a licence, drink-drug driving (DUI) and dangerous driving.

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