Royal family member could face charges after 'terrifying' 60mph car crash

The Duke of Kent
By Samantha Simmonds
published

The Queen’s cousin Edward is said to have left a student ‘badly shaken’ after a terrifying smash on the A27.

The 83-year-old Duke of Kent allegedly pulled out ‘suddenly’ in front of Olivia Fellows, forcing her to slam on her brakes and crash into the central reservation.

The 21-year-old student was driving her Mini on the A27 near Brighton on Sunday 2nd June when the incident occurred. ’I was driving north at 60mph and suddenly this Jaguar pulled out in front of me,’ she told the MailOnline. ‘I saw the Jag to my left and it looked like he was going to go, then hesitated and changed his mind and went to go again.

‘He shot across the road. But it was so close that if I hadn’t emergency braked I would have gone straight into the middle of his car. As I put on the brakes, my car span towards the central reservation and smashed into it.’

Olivia clipped the curb and buckled the wheel arch of her car, which was written off as a result of the crash. 'Two women who were behind his car came running over screaming, “Oh my God, oh my God, are you OK?”’ she added. The two women took down the numberplate of the Jaguar, and the police later discovered that the car was registered to Buckingham Palace.

The Duke and Duchess of Kent

While Olivia hasn’t heard from the Duke or the Palace since the crash, a spokesperson for the Palace confirmed: ‘A royal household vehicle was involved indirectly in a collision on June 2 in Sussex.’

A spokesperson for Sussex Police added that ‘inquiries are ongoing,’ meaning the Duke could still face charges.

The incident comes after Prince Philip came under fire for colliding with a mother driving a Kia in January. The driver and her passenger suffered minor injuries as a result of the crash, but her nine-month-old baby was unharmed.

The Duke of Edinburgh sent the woman a heartfelt apology letter after the crash, and eventually opted to surrender his driving licence.

However, AA president Edmund King told the BBC that while high profile car crashes can spark fears over older drivers, young drivers still pose a much bigger hazard.

‘Young, predominantly male drivers are much more likely to crash within six months of passing their test than older drivers within six months of hanging up their keys,’ he confirmed.

Samantha Simmonds
Freelance journalist

Samantha Simmonds is a freelance journalist, content writer, copywriter, and editor based in London. 

She graduated from Reading University with a First Class degree in Psychology, later achieving a Distinction in her Diploma in Fashion & Personal Styling from The London College of Style. 

Samantha is currently creating digital editorial content for John Lewis, writing for The Edit's wellbeing channel. She also writes for publications including Women's Health, Top Santé, Refinery29, GoodtoKnow, Cosmopolitan, Healthy, Health & Wellbeing, woman&home, and Yahoo, and has created commercial content for brands including Berghaus, Amazon, and Regaine.

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