When you think of someone causing a hit-and-run accident, you likely picture a reckless driver who makes contact with another vehicle and then quickly flees the scene. This scenario is often the case, but it's also possible for you to perpetrate a hit-and-run incident without being aware of it. For example, you might back into another vehicle in the parking lot but do so gently enough that you don't realize the two vehicles have made contact. If the other motorist gets your license plate number, he or she will commonly report you — and you may soon be charged with a hit and run. Here are some arguments that you can make to your attorney that suggest you weren't aware of the contact between the vehicles.

You Didn't Speed Away

The speed at which you drove away after bumping into the other vehicle may suggest your lack of knowledge about the collision. For example, a driver who makes contact with other vehicle and then drives away quickly and erratically will look as though he or she was aware of the incident. However, someone who drives away at a normal pace may suggest a lack of knowledge of the collision. Your car accident attorney may be able to get surveillance footage from the scene of the incident to show how you drove away.

You Continued With Your Schedule

A driver who knowingly commits a hit-and-run accident won't merely flee the scene, but may also drive home and hide his or her vehicle in the garage. If you can prove that you continued on with your day, rather than going straight home after the incident, this may support your claim that you weren't aware of the contact between the vehicles. For example, you may be able to provide receipts that show you made several shopping stops after the incident — something that could suggest everything was normal in your mind.

You Reported The Damage

Another argument that can suggest your lack of knowledge about the incident is that you noticed the damage to your vehicle and made a police report because you thought that someone may have bumped into your car. A driver who is aware of causing a hit-and-run accident is unlikely to engage in this behavior. If you've done so, you can share your police report with your attorney, and he or she will add it to the ever-growing list of details that suggest even if you bumped into the other vehicle, you didn't realize that you did so.