Police career inspired after father's life saved

Sgt Rich Hatch has been a road traffic officer for nearly 25 years

A policeman, whose career has spanned nearly a quarter of a century, has said he was inspired to join the force by a traffic officer who saved his father's life.

Sgt Rich Hatch's dad was involved in a collision in the early 1990s and he said it was the thoughtful questioning of the police officer at the time, that led him to pursue the career himself.

"He identified that my father had a blind spot in his vision, which, when investigated further, turned out to be a brain tumour," said Sgt Hatch, who works for Wiltshire Police.

"The officer saved my father's life by taking the time to understand why he'd had a collision that he should not really have had."

It was this contact with a traffic officer that led Sgt Hatch to follow in his footsteps.

He is now in charge of the Serious Collision Investigation Team (SCIT) which looks at the majority of fatal and life-debilitating injury collisions that occur in the county.

He said one of the biggest frustrations of the team is often the hostility shown towards them at the scenes of road closures.

Sgt Hatch was inspired to take up a career in road policing after a traffic officer saved his father's life

“Whilst we appreciate that there are enormous pressures placed on people in the UK, and the roads are very congested, it seems that a lot of drivers have forgotten to be nice," he said.

"Let people out of junctions safely, or give room to pedal cyclists and motorbikes, wait for that pedestrian to cross, even if the light is green for you, these people are entitled to be on the roads and are amongst the most vulnerable of road users we have.

"We must all remember that one small mistake can lead very quickly to the death of another and this is life-changing for both parties involved."

More than 3,000 people a year die on our roads nationally.

In 2023 alone, 255 people were killed or seriously injured in collisions in Wiltshire.

'People make mistakes'

While the resulting road closures can often be the source of frustration, Sgt Hatch said a thorough investigation of each fatal collision is vital.

“Scenes by their volatile nature can take many hours to complete, but working together, we try to reduce the impact these events have on our communities and the wider infrastructure," he said.

"Being convicted of death by dangerous driving can now carry a life imprisonment, which is the same as the sentence for murder."

He added: "The officer who saved my father's life was thoughtful and treated my father with respect.

"He understood that good people make mistakes."