Dear Sir,
On the evening of Wednesday 8th January, the staff of the OakLeaf Sports Complex were informed that a motorist had hit the vehicle of a user of the centre, and driven off.
Luckily, the centre has recently upgraded its CCTV and, as such, the unfortunate victim could be forgiven for thinking he could quickly identify the culprit. Imagine my surprise to learn that, after putting out a tannoy announcement about the event, the centre staff refused to provide the registration details of the suspect to the vehicle’s owner! The reason cited for this was something on the lines of data protection or privacy laws.
For full disclosure, I did not witness this directly, but if this is indeed true, I think it is truly ridiculous. Once again, the working man takes the hit whilst a low life walks away scot-free.
It’s a world gone mad. If the second hand information, which I have received, is indeed true. I’d love to hear a comment from the OakLeaf as to why the details of the suspect could not be provided. Had this been my vehicle, which I have worked hard to pay for, I would have been furious.
If the unfortunate victim decides to claim on his vehicle insurance then indirectly we will all pay, by means of inflated future premiums.
The only saving grace is that the vehicle that was damaged was struck at the rear, and is fitted with a tow bar. As such, with a stroke of luck, the perpetrator’s vehicle will have suffered some serious damage.
Name and address supplied.
Response from OakLeaf Sports Complex:
The registration plate was called over the tannoy system to inform the individual that an incident had been reported. The Complex staff, however, stated that they would not be able to pass on any personal data or CCTV footage. This data would only be shared with authorised parties, such as the police or insurance companies, if required.