A woman who was nearly killed in a hit-and-run says her life was “ruined” and she wants the driver to get their “just deserts” – as police launch a national crackdown on dangerous uninsured motorists.
Sharon Cochrane spent four months in hospital after suffering a broken leg and arm, eight broken ribs, two broken collarbones and a fractured neck, as well as a bleed on the brain and a collapsed lung.
The 64-year-old Sainsbury’s employee was walking to work in East Ham in London when a car, being driven on the wrong side of the road, crashed into her on the pavement.
Mrs Cochrane told Sky News she was sent “flying into the road” during the incident in July 2018, while the suspected uninsured driver failed to stop and has never been caught.
Image: Mrs Cochrane suffered a broken leg and arm, eight broken ribs and two broken collarbones. Pic: Sharon Cochrane
It comes as UK police forces enforce a week-long operation called Op Drive Insured, which aims to increase the number of uninsured vehicles seized across the country.
Extra attention will be given to the worst-affected parts of the UK, with Birmingham having the highest levels of uninsured driving, according to Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB).
The not-for-profit organisation, which compensates victims of collisions involving hit-and-run drivers and uninsured vehicles, said it received more than 26,000 claims in 2021.
Hunt for hit-and-run driver
Mrs Cochrane said she had to learn to walk again and was bedridden at home for 11 months after being discharged from hospital.
Advertisement
She can no longer drive, she continues to suffer swelling on her legs, and she is unable to bend one of her arms.
Image: Sharon Cochrane says her life is still affected by the hit-and-run more than four years later
“Four months in hospital, 11 months to walk again – your life is ruined,” Mrs Cochrane told Sky News.
“I can’t drive any more because of the pins I’ve got everywhere. All the swelling I’ve still got. There’s so much I can’t do.
“Without catching anyone, you don’t seem to have any closure… you can’t see justice served.
“If they had caught him, and he had been drunk or had been on drugs, he would have got his comeuppance.
“He might still have, who knows? Something might have happened – his car might have blown up, his house might have caught fire.
“We wish all we can on him and hope he gets his just deserts.”
‘My life was ruined’
Mrs Cochrane said she has no memory of being hit by the car and woke up in intensive care at the Royal Free Hospital in London, surrounded by her family.
Image: Police appealed for information after the hit-and-run but no one has been caught. Pic: Sharon Cochrane
“Doctors said to me, they’ve had people with a lot less injuries not make it,” she added.
“Normally I’m a strong person but when I saw what I couldn’t do for 11 months – and in my head thinking, this is going to be forever, not walking, stuck in a bed… the thought of it was making me sick.”
In a message to the driver, Mrs Cochrane said: “My life, my husband’s life, everything was ruined because of this.
“We can all mistakes – god, I’ve made hundreds in my life – but I personally would have at least stopped and called an ambulance.”
Worst areas for uninsured drivers revealed
Ranked by postal areas, Birmingham has the five locations with the highest levels of uninsured driving, based on MIB claims, followed by Purfleet in Essex, Smethwick in the West Midlands and the Manchester areas of Cheetham Hill, Crumpsall and Strangeways.
Motorcyclist Graham Hills said he was left in “excruciating” pain and expected to die after he was hit by an uninsured car while he was riding at 60mph.
Image: Graham Hills spent 102 days in hospital after being hit by an uninsured car. Pic: Graham Hills
The 64-year-old spent 102 days in hospital after needing emergency operations to repair a punctured lung, cut spleen, open pelvis, torn rectum, four major ligaments in his knee, a broken ankle and several broken ribs.
The collision happened on the A262 in Kent in July 2018 after an elderly driver of an uninsured car suddenly turned into the opposite lane, causing Mr Hills to hit the vehicle head-on.
“I had a momentary flash in my mind – that’s it, I was instantly convinced I was going to die,” he told Sky News.
“I remember being on my back some way beyond the car, having hit it and flown over the top of it and just being very surprised I was still alive and struggling to breathe, with very severe pelvic pain.
“You probably couldn’t get much more pain and still be alive.”
Image: Mr Hills said he ‘expected to die’ when he was struck by the vehicle
Careless driving prosecution
Mr Hills was flown by air ambulance to King’s College Hospital in London, where he had two spells in intensive care after contracting gangrene and sepsis.
He said the driver of the uninsured vehicle was prosecuted for careless driving and driving without insurance and received eight points on his licence and was fined £400.
“That doesn’t feel quite enough,” Mr Hills added.
He said the MIB helped him secure compensation of about £230,000 following the crash.
Mr Hills needed around 50 further hospital visits after being discharged and wore a knee brace for 10 months as he had to learn to walk again.
He can now drive again and said doctors are “amazed” at his recovery.
Image: Mr Hills said doctors have been ‘amazed’ at his recovery
“With an open book pelvic fracture, most people die at the scene,” he said. “If they get to hospital alive, most people die within a day.
“They view me as almost a bit of a miracle really because I’m pretty normal in a lot of ways.
“If you were to look at me… you wouldn’t know I had a near-death crash.”
‘Uninsured drivers cause higher rate of collisions’
Motorists have been urged to make sure their insurance is valid to avoid being caught up in Op Drive Insured.
Paul Farley, law enforcement manager at MIB, said: “Put simply, uninsured drivers are dangerous. They cause a much higher rate of collisions, and they’re often linked to wider road crime, including hit-and-run crashes.
“It’s sadly become an all-too-common experience to hear on the news that yet another person’s life has been cut short after being hit by an illegal motorist.
“We’re working day and night with our police partners to put an end to this.
“We hope Op Drive Insured sends a clear message that no one is above the law and those who choose to drive without insurance will not get away with it.”
Sir Keir Starmer has urged anyone with information on the Jeffrey Epstein case to come forward after Andrew Mountbatten Windsor missed the deadline to appear in front of US Congress.
US legislators have criticised Andrew for what they describe as “silence” amid their probe into Epstein after he failed to respond to their request for an interview.
When asked about Andrew missing the deadline and whether the former princeshould help the case in any way he can, Sir Keir said on his way to the G20 summit in South Africa: “I don’t comment on this particular case.”
He added that “a general principle I’ve held for a very long time is that anybody who has got relevant information in relation to these kind of cases should give that evidence to those that need it”.
Andrew is not legally obliged to talk to Congress and has always vigorously denied any wrongdoing.
More on Andrew Mountbatten Windsor
Related Topics:
Image: Sir Keir Starmer spoke to reporters on his way to the G20 in South Africa. Pic: Reuters
It comes as Marjorie Taylor Greene, a loyal supporter-turned-critic of US President Donald Trump, said on Friday she is resigning from Congress in January.
Ms Greene’s resignation followed a public falling-out with Mr Trump in recent months, as the congresswoman criticised him for his stance on files related to Epstein, as well as on foreign policy and healthcare.
Members of the House Oversight Committee had requested a “transcribed interview” with Andrew in connection with his “long-standing friendship” with Epstein, the paedophile financier who took his own life in a New York prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking and conspiracy charges.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
2:35
Releasing the Epstein files: How we got here
But after saying they had not heard back, Democrats Robert Garcia and Suhas Subramanyam accused Andrew of hiding.
Their statement read: “Andrew Mountbatten Windsor’s silence in the face of the Oversight Democrat’s demand for testimony speaks volumes.
“The documents we’ve reviewed, along with public records and Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s testimony, raise serious questions he must answer, yet he continues to hide.
“Our work will move forward with or without him, and we will hold anyone who was involved in these crimes accountable, no matter their wealth, status, or political party. We will get justice for the survivors.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
13:31
The new Epstein files: The key takeaways
It follows Andrew being stripped of his prince and Duke of York titles earlier this month.
He had previously agreed to stop using his titles, but had expected to remain a prince and retain his dukedom, ahead of the publication of the memoirs of the late Ms Giuffre, who had accused him of sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager – an accusation he denies.
A 13-year-old girl has been arrested on suspicion of murdering a woman in Swindon.
Police said the teenager was detained following an incident in Baydon Close, Moredon, in the Wiltshire town on Friday evening.
Officers responded to reports of disorder inside a house. When they arrived, a woman in her 50s living at the address was found to be not breathing. She was declared dead at the scene.
There were no other reported injuries.
Image: Forensic officers are at the scene to collect evidence
Detective Inspector Darren Ambrose, from Wiltshire Police’s major crime investigation team, said: “This is a serious incident in which a woman has sadly died.
“We have set up a cordon at the address while an investigation is carried out.
“I can confirm that we have arrested a teenage girl in connection with this incident and we are not looking for anyone else.”
Police have asked people not to speculate about the incident online as this could prejudice the case.
A police statement read: “Residents can expect to see an increased police presence in the area while we continue carrying out our enquiries into the woman’s death.
Rail fares are to be frozen for the first time in 30 years, the government has announced.
Ministers promised that millions of rail travellers will save hundreds of pounds on regulated fares, including season tickets and peak and off-peak returns between major cities.
The fare freeze applies to England and services run by English train operators.
People commuting to work three days a week using flexi-season tickets will save £315 a year travelling from Milton Keynes to London, £173 travelling from Woking to London and £57 from Bradford to Leeds, the government said.
The changes are part of Labour’s plans to rebuild a publicly owned Great British Railways. Other planned changes include tap in-tap out and digital ticketing, as well as investing in superfast Wi-Fi.
Image: The freeze applies to regulated fares, including season tickets and peak and off-peak returns. Pic: iStock
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the government was introducing a freeze on rail fares for the first time in 30 years, which “will ease the pressure on household finances and make travelling to work, school or to visit friends and family that bit easier”.
“We all want to see cheaper rail travel, so we’re freezing fares to help millions of passengers save money,” Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said.
“Commuters on more expensive routes will save more than £300 per year, meaning they keep more of their hard-earned cash.”
Rail unions and passenger groups welcomed the move, praising how it will make travel more affordable for passengers and promote more sustainable travel alternatives.
Eddie Dempsey, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, said: “More affordable fares will encourage greater use of public transport, supporting jobs, giving a shot in the arm to local economies and helping to improve the environment.”
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said the rail fare freeze “will be a huge relief to working people”.
“This is the right decision, at the right time, to help passengers be able to afford to make that journey they need to take, and to help grow our railway in this country, because the railway is Britain’s green alternative – taking cars and lorries off our congested roads and moving people and goods safely around our country in an environmentally-friendly way,” Mick Whelan, general secretary of the train drivers union Aslef, said.
The Tories welcomed the move but said the government was “late to the platform”.
Shadow transport secretary Richard Holden said: “In government, the Conservatives kept fares on the right track with below-inflation rises and consistently called for no further hikes to protect hard-working commuters.”