More people flee the scene after causing an accident, figures from motorist guarantee fund Waarborgfonds Motorverkeer have shown.

In 2020 there were slightly over three hit-and-runs a day resulting in death or injury, compared to four in 2022, according to the organisation which compensates people who have been hit by an uninsured or unknown motorist.

“It is our experience that hit-and-run drivers either hand themselves in to police within 24 hours or not at all,” Waarborgfonds spokesman Bert Sonneveld told the Telegraaf.

It may take time but, certainly in cases of very serious accidents, perpetrators will be tracked down by police, either through their licence plate number or cctv footage, Sonneveld said.

People flee the scene for two reasons, he said. “One is they are in the grip of a blind panic and want to get home and hide under the bed and pretend it didn’t happen, or they are under the influence of alcohol or drugs and want the effects to wear off.”

A 74-year-old woman and a 79-year-old man were killed instantly in a hit-and-run incident in Rotterdam last weekend. A 37-year-old man from Nijmegen. who had been driving an uninsured van, later handed himself in to police.

On Sunday, a 67-year-old motorbike rider lost his life following a collision with a car in Lengel in Gelderland while a 62-year-old woman riding pillion was taken to hospital with serious injuries. The motorist who caused the accident fled the scene but was arrested after driving his car into a tree.

It is a punishable crime in the Netherlands to leave the scene of an accident and abandon someone who needs help.