Singer Ellie Goulding has said that witnesses to a crash between a lorry and car who she saw filming the incident instead of trying to help were acting “instinctively” because of social media.
Last week she came to the rescue of a driver whose Volkswagen GTi was being pushed sideways along one of London’s busiest roads by a Royal Mail driver who later claimed not to have seen the car.
Goulding, who personally checked to see if the driver was alright after seeing the collision, told her 14.4 million Instagram followers that she was shocked that some other witnesses had decided to film the incident and verbally abuse the driver rather than try to help.
She told the PA news agency on Monday: “I think people just instinctively now just take out their phones to film things.
“I think that is just mobile phone culture and there is such a big thing with Instagram and TikTok and just videoing things, so I think that was an instinctive thing.
“My instinctive thing was just to check that this person was OK and not to film.
“I think it just shows you the difference between some people’s priorities.”
In footage that was circulated on social media of the crash on Western Avenue, A40, the delivery driver eventually stops after motorists honk their horns and shout at him: “What the f*** are you doing man?!”
He then appears astonished to see the car in front of his truck, claiming he did not see it or know that it was there.
He could be heard yelling: “I didn’t see him, I honestly didn’t see him.”
Goulding revealed on Instagram that her driver, Guy, was also one of those who stopped to help.
A spokesman for the Royal Mail said that they are “very concerned” about the incident.