Nearly one in five crashes attended by AA Accident Assist in 2025 involved drivers hitting a parked car, according to new figures from The AA, with low-speed and avoidable incidents continuing to account for a significant number of collisions.
AA Accident Assist supported around 67,000 drivers following a crash over the course of the year.
While the most common incident remained collisions with another moving vehicle (40%), everyday hazards also featured heavily.
Parked vehicles were involved in 19% of incidents, while 10% of crashes were caused by drivers rear-ending the vehicle in front in slow-moving traffic.
Drivers also frequently collided with inanimate objects. Kerbs, open car doors and debris in the road each accounted for around 2% of incidents, alongside impacts with walls, hedges and barriers.
Collisions involving animals were less common, with incidents involving deer making up about 1% of cases.
A review of incident descriptions suggested that lapses in concentration played a major role in many crashes.
These included misjudging space in car parks, forgetting to apply the handbrake, and errors made on narrow roads or through roadworks.
Tim Rankin, managing director at 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, show 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.”
The AA said the findings underline the importance of maintaining focus even during routine or low-speed journeys, where many drivers may be more prone to distraction.
