The number of hit-and-run accidents where the driver flees the scene after damaging a parked car is increasing.
Last year there were close to 60,000 such infections and this year it looks like there will be even more.
A development that the police take seriously.
– You have a legal obligation to make yourself known to the owner of the car you have, for example, driven into or opened the door of. If you evade, you risk a hefty fine, says Jimmy Norberg, head of the traffic police in Jämtland.
The number of contagion accidents due to parking damage has varied somewhat over time, but has increased in the last three years and there is a trend towards an increase this year as well.
Last year, there were 59,382 such incidents in the country where the guilty driver fled the scene without reporting himself, according to figures from the police.
This is despite the fact that the cars are becoming more modern with cameras and reversing alarms.
Increases during Christmas shopping
Just between January and October this year, there were 52,542 infections due to parking damage, and at this time of the year there are usually many incidents like this.
– My experience is that this increases in step with Christmas shopping. Many people are out in urban environments and at shopping centers and then it can get crowded in the parking lots, says Jimmy Norberg, head of the traffic police in Jämtland.
Larger cars a problem
Experts in the car industry and several police officers around the country that TV4 Nyheterna spoke to believe that one of the reasons is that the cars are getting bigger, while the parking spaces are often the same size as before.
And that many drivers are unfocused when, for example, they reverse in a parking lot.
Niklas Tander in Östersund is one of those affected. He was backed up in a parking lot in Östersund some time ago. He noticed it when he came out of the store.
– I was pissed off. I think you can have so much rye in your back that you can let yourself know if you drove into my car. This cost me SEK 3,000, he says.
– After this, I have started to park where there are not so many cars. Sure, it often takes a bit longer to walk, but it’s worth it.