What to do if…
a stranger claims you damaged their car and insists you move to a quieter location

What to do now

1. Make your position safer without going with them. If the place you have stopped feels unsafe, put your hazard lights on if needed and move only as far as necessary to the nearest busy, well-lit public place, such as a petrol station forecourt, supermarket front, or main road. Keep the doors locked and the windows mostly up.
2. Call for help based on risk.
   • If you feel in danger, they are trying to get into your car, blocking you in, threatening you, or following you, call 999 and say you feel unsafe after a claimed car damage incident.
   • If it is not an emergency but you need police involvement, contact 101 or use your local police force’s online reporting route once you are in a safe public place. If a legal accident report is required, follow police instructions about how to make it.
3. Use one clear sentence and do not debate. From inside the car, say: “I will exchange details here, in public, or with police present. I am not going somewhere quieter.”
4. Exchange only the usual required details if it is safe. If there may have been contact, damage, or injury, give and ask for the driver’s name and address, the vehicle registration number, and the owner’s name and address if the vehicle is not owned by the driver. If insurance details are requested, give the relevant insurance information without handing over documents for photographs.
5. Protect your ID. If they demand photos of your driving licence, insurance certificate, or other documents, say: “I’m not sharing document photos. Police or insurers can deal with the paperwork.”
6. Record what you can without escalating. Note their registration number, vehicle make, model and colour, what they said, where it happened, and what made you feel unsafe. Take photos or video only if you can do it without making the situation worse. Preserve dashcam footage if you have it.
7. If it is not safe to exchange details, leave for safety and report promptly. Go to a safer public place and report the incident to police as soon as you can. If there may have been an accident causing damage or injury and you could not give details at the time, report it as soon as reasonably practicable and, in any case, within 24 hours; this does not mean you should wait.
8. Tell your insurer once you are safe. Report what happened to your insurer even if you do not plan to make a claim. Keep it factual and mention any safety concerns, pressure to move location, or suspected staged incident.
9. If you suspect a staged incident or insurance fraud, report it once safe. Tell police or the Insurance Fraud Bureau CheatLine what happened, including pressure to isolate you, demands for document photos, intimidation, or pressure to pay cash.