A nurse who used the last of her pay to help buy a car for her retirement has been left devastated after it was wrecked by a hit and run driver. Claire Stingl, who worked on the neo natal ward at the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, heard the smash just as she was going to bed, but was too late to catch the perpetrator.
The Nissan Juke cost her nearly £10,000 and was her pride and joy. Now she fears it’s a write off and she’ll be stung on her insurance as the person who crashed into it drove off.
Mrs Stingl, 62, who worked for NHS for more than 40 years, had parked the car as usual outside her house on Laburnam Way, Penarth. She said: “It’s very upsetting. They hit it so hard they pushed it back a meter and its a heavy car. The whole side is smashed in and liquid has been pouring out of the engine.
Read more: Inside Penarth penthouse with one of the best views of Cardiff Bay from the balcony
“As a nurse I was never able to afford to buy a new car. This one was three years old and the most expensive car I’ve ever had and I only finished paying it off last year.
“People drive so fast along this road. It made such a noise the neighbours came out and the dogs were barking.”
The smash was caught on Mrs Stingl’s CCTV but not clearly enough to identify the car or the driver involved. The only clues left behind were glass from smashed headlights from the other car and white paint marks.
Mrs Stingl’s son Ant said: “My mother bought the car as a retirement gift to herself for all the years of hard work, someone drove into her car last night and left the scene, she was absolutely devastated as the car was not only a vital means of transport but also a symbol of all her years to the NHS.
“Someone is driving around with smashed headlights from this.”
Mrs Stingl has reported the incident to police and her insurers.
Read next:
- Driver on wrong side of busy city centre road speeds through red lights and smashes into car
- Car insurance myths that could see you fined and given penalty points
- Takeaway's lovely gesture to hospital ward patients who fancied a curry but had little cash
- Welsh bookshop announced best Independent Bookshop of the Year
- Shocking moment car hits seven-year-old girl in busy Cardiff street
