Hairdresser left injured at crash site on first date and now unable to work

A hairdresser's first date ended in disaster after her companion crashed his car and left her injured and unable to work. Photo / AP file

A woman's first date ended with her being seriously injured when her admirer crashed his car into a tree while showing off to her before fleeing police.

Carrie-Anne Knox, 26, was left lying unconscious and suffering a broken arm by Bradley Van Outen, who ran away after crashing his car on their date.

The 30-year-old had been showing off to Knox when he ploughed his BMW convertible into a tree, Bournemouth Crown Court heard.

Van Outen had already been banned from driving and so fled the scene afterwards, leaving her lying unconscious.

Knox is still recovering from her injuries eight months later and has lost her job as a hairdresser as a result.

After Van Outen was jailed for two years for a string of driving offences, Knox spoke of her ordeal that happened on the first date she had been on in 10 years.

The mother-of-two said she had recently come out of a 10-year relationship with the father of her children when Van Outen asked her out.

She said she agreed to go out with him for lunch after meeting him while he did some groundwork outside her home in Bournemouth, Dorset.

Knox was in the middle of putting her seatbelt on when Van Outen crashed as they left a pub car park in June last year.

She said: "He doughnutted once and I grabbed the side of the door in a panic. As he went round a second time I could feel the back end losing control.

"We hit the tree and I went flying into the windscreen. I had glass in my head and they found my hair and eyelashes embedded in the crack of the windscreen.

"The doctors later told me if the seatbelt hadn't been around my shoulder I could have died. "When I looked down at my arm I could see something was wrong.

"He said 'I'm sorry but we need to get out of here'. I told him I couldn't move and I wasn't going anywhere. His side was fine so he got out, pulled my door open and pulled me out of the car by my broken arm.

"The pain hit me and I must have passed out but I saw him get something out of the boot then run off. I woke up on a bench with a lady looking after me."

First date from hell: Woman's admirer leaves her unconscious as he flees police after crashing BMW https://t.co/pnqMSf5I8L pic.twitter.com/wSG36aAYB9

— Telegraph Breaking News (@TelegraphNews) March 13, 2017

Knox suffered a multiple spiral fracture of her upper left arm and needed a four-and-a-half-hour operation to insert metal plates and 28 staples to seal the wound.

Afterwards, she could not look after her two young daughters or even make a cup of tea.

She has since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and prescribed medication to help her sleep.

She has still not regained full use of her arm and had to give up her job as her boss could not hold the position open for her.

She said: "It's definitely the worst date I've ever been on and has put me off men - I won't be dating again any time soon."

Van Outen, of Havant, Hampshire, admitted causing serious injury by dangerous driving, driving while disqualified, failing to stop after an accident, failing to report an accident, driving without insurance and failing to give information relating to the identification of a driver.

Judge Brian Forster QC sentenced him to two years in prison and a four-year driving ban.