As people reflect on the ups and downs of the last year, some 67,000 customers who used the AA’s Accident Assist service, may be thinking about the crashes they've been involved in.
Unsurprisingly, the most common incident was colliding with another vehicle while driving (40%), but there are many other crashes which may have been avoided. Around a fifth (19%) of crashes involved hitting a parked car, whereas one in 10 incidents involved driving into the back of another vehicle in slow moving traffic.
The data also reveals the wide range of inanimate objects people have hit throughout the year. This includes car doors, kerbs and debris on the road.
AA Accident Assist – Top 10 crashes 2025
- Hit another vehicle while driving – 40%
- Hit a parked vehicle – 19%
- Rear-ending the vehicle in front – 10%
- Hit a kerb – 2%
- Hit an open car door – 2%
- Hit debris/object in the road – 2%
- Hit a wall – 2%
- Hit a hedge – 1%
- Hit a barrier – 1%
- Hit a deer – 1%
Further study of the incident descriptions revealed that in many cases, lapses in concentration played a huge role in collisions taking place. Here are some of the things that have happened on UK roads this year;
Incidents with others – ‘Vehicle proceeding along narrow road as oncoming vehicle approaches, when both vehicle wing mirrors had collided with each other and breaking.’, ‘Forgot to put handbrake on, car rolled into neighbours parked car.’
Hit object at home – ‘Reversed out of garage and hit a ladder.’, ‘Parking at home and hit a wall.’
Hit object away from home – ‘Hit a barrier in a car park.’, ‘Driving through motorway roadworks and hit a traffic cone.’
Tim Rankin, managing director for AA Accident Assist, said: “Being involved in a crash is incredibly stressful and can affect people in different ways. Aside from any physical injuries, people could be mentally and emotionally affected for some time. Our data reveals that in many cases, a momentary loss of concentration is a key factor in the collision happening. Be that being too close to the vehicle in front, forgetting to put the handbrake on, or misjudging the space in car parks.
“As we head into 2026, a New Year’s resolution for all drivers could be to allow more space between yourself and other road users showing respect, slow down, and keep your eyes on the road. That would reduce the number of crashes, save people money and push insurance costs down.”
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