Courtyards, parking areas near office centers and shops, and open parking lots are so densely packed with cars that maneuvering in them becomes quite difficult. Minor traffic accidents happen constantly under such conditions. Drivers clip neighboring cars, brush against them, damage body panels or lights. Each such incident legally counts as a full traffic accident. After a minor accident, it's important to act properly. Yet drivers don't always handle minor accidents responsibly. Most try to leave the scene as quickly as possible without notifying the owner of the damaged vehicle. If the at-fault driver leaves the scene without authorization, this can lead to serious problems.
At the same time, more drivers involved in minor accidents are being identified thanks to surveillance cameras in parking areas, as well as the help of witnesses to the collision, other road users, and drivers of nearby parked cars.
But everyday life also produces situations where a driver simply didn't notice an accident they were involved in and, without giving it a second thought, drove on.
Natalya (name changed) works for a parcel delivery service, driving huge numbers of packages every day. She was a diligent driver who always drove very carefully and followed all traffic rules. One working day, she was driving her usual route to her next delivery stop, as always — listening to the radio, thinking her own thoughts, and focused on the road. Then, on her way back to the office, she was flagged down. A man, waving his arms and shouting loudly, insisted that Natalya had clipped his car while driving past. She was genuinely surprised — she hadn't heard any sound of a collision, and there were no marks on her car at all. She quickly told the young man he must be mistaken and had likely confused her car with someone else's, and drove on.
That, however, wasn't the end of it. As it turned out, the man had written down Natalya's license plate that day and called the police, who logged the incident. Some time later, Natalya received a police summons. The thing is, in situations like this — where an accident has occurred and you personally are accused of it — even if you don't believe you're at fault, you should never leave the scene. Otherwise, you fall under a criminal offense: unlawfully leaving the scene of an accident (Unerlaubtes Entfernen vom Unfallort).
Under German law, the penalty for this offense can be up to 3 years' imprisonment or a fine (§142 of the German Criminal Code – Strafgesetzbuch (StGB)).
As a result, a criminal case was opened against Natalya, and she immediately came to our law firm for help. She described the whole situation to the attorney and insisted that she hadn't heard or noticed anything and had no idea how this could have happened. Moreover, there were no marks whatsoever on her car. The attorney then requested the case file to find out what was going on. Once the file arrived, the picture became clearer — it revealed the circumstances of the accident and what the victim was basing his claim on. There were also photographs documenting exactly where and how the man's car had been parked.
The case file revealed to the attorney that the little street where it all happened was very narrow, and the victim, after parking his rather large car, had crossed the street to quickly buy cigarettes.
Just as he was paying, he suddenly heard a crash and the sound of breaking glass. Running back outside, he saw from a distance that his passenger-side mirror had been knocked shut and bent. He also claimed that no car other than Natalya's had been on the street at that moment, so it seemed obvious to him that she was the one at fault. The case file also contained statements from several witnesses who likewise pointed to Natalya. According to them, the sound of the cars touching had been short, sharp, but fairly loud. They couldn't say for certain, however, whether our client had noticed the sound of the glass — though they leaned toward the theory that she had, since she had briefly slowed down right after driving past. In their view, this suggested she had noticed what happened. The attorney relayed all of this to his client. She explained that there was an intersection just ahead, and that she had only slowed down to yield to vehicles approaching from the right.
Under German law, if an accident occurs and the driver genuinely did not notice it, the fact that they drove away and didn't remain at the scene cannot be treated as concealment, and therefore does not constitute a criminal offense — because in such a case the offense's subjective element, namely fault on the part of the driver, is missing. This became the central pillar of our firm's defense of Natalya. To establish our client's legal position, the attorney filed a petition to close the case under §170 of the German Code of Criminal Procedure (Strafprozessordnung – StPO) for lack of a criminal offense. The petition set out all the circumstances in detail and presented the following arguments.
First, there was not a single mark of impact anywhere on our client's car: no scratches, dents, or other damage. Given that the victim's mirror was shattered and even knocked shut, it stands to reason that such a forceful impact should have left some trace on our client's car as well — yet there was none, and the victim himself, when he stopped our client on her way back, quickly examined her car and found nothing. Our client's fault in causing the accident was therefore not proven; it's entirely possible some other car had driven past. Second, our client always listens to the radio or music while driving, and that day was no exception — she had brought along a disc of her favorite rock band, which was playing loudly throughout the car the whole time. It would hardly be surprising, then, if she genuinely hadn't heard any bump at all, even if one occurred. Third, the witnesses cannot say for certain whether our client noticed the sound or not, and their claim that she slowed down after the collision because she'd heard something is mere speculation. The real reason she slowed down was that there was an intersection ahead — and, as is well known, traffic rules require a driver at an uncontrolled intersection of equal-priority roads to yield to vehicles approaching from the right (the so-called "priority to the right" rule). She therefore needed to slow down to check that no cars were coming from that direction. Moreover, at the moment she slowed down, she behaved calmly, as if nothing had happened, and showed no outward sign of surprise, concern, or fright — whereas, statistically, drivers in such situations tend to flinch, look around, and generally act oddly and appear visibly troubled. The witnesses themselves confirmed our client's calm demeanor throughout the incident. Fourth, if our client had genuinely noticed the accident and wanted to flee the scene, she would not have driven back the same way, but would have taken a different street.
All the circumstances and facts set out by the attorney, demonstrating our client's innocence, achieved their purpose, and the case was closed under §170 of the German Code of Criminal Procedure (Strafprozessordnung – StPO) for lack of a criminal offense.
This case clearly illustrates how important it is to engage a professional defense attorney in criminal proceedings. A qualified lawyer, drawing on broad experience with the wide range of problems clients face, can not only apply the relevant legal provisions correctly to protect your interests, but can also uncover facts that will undoubtedly tip the scales in the client's favor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is leaving the scene of an accident a crime if the driver didn't notice it?
No — liability under §142 StGB requires subjective fault; if it's shown the driver genuinely didn't notice the collision, no offense has been committed.
What evidence helps prove a lack of fault in minor-accident cases?
The absence of impact marks on the vehicle, circumstances explaining the driver's behavior (loud music, yielding to traffic), and witness testimony about the driver's calm demeanor.
Under what provision are such cases closed?
Such cases are closed under §170 of the German Code of Criminal Procedure (StPO) for lack of a criminal offense.
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