A GASTARD mum has been left heartbroken after a hit and run driver crashed into her car, writing it off.

Rachael Bonneau, 42 of Chapel Knapp, was horrified to find that her Vauxhall Astra was smashed just minutes before she was about to take her daughter Amelie to school around 8am.

“Having a puppy and a five year old is a nightmare getting out of the house and I have made sure to leave earlier so I have a parking space outside my daughter’s school. It was just a normal day and I walked outside to find that someone had smashed the car,” she said.

“Amelie immediately started to cry because she was scared and confused by it all. She was so distraught that I thought I just had to take her away from it all and act like it was fine when deep down I thought oh my god how has this happened.

“Normally my reaction would have been to burst into tears. It was only when I went and had a closer look that I was obvious a car had done the damaged.”

The self-employed business woman, who owns the Cheese Shop with her husband in Bradford on Avon, added that she immediately thought the damage was caused by a lorry as wine storage specialists Octavian are based down the road.

“I just thought I need to get in touch with the council as well to see if there is any signage I can get to put up and stop lorry drivers using the area as a place to turn around. I’m just terrified it’s going to happen again,” Mrs Bonneau added.

“I can’t believe someone could do that amount of damage and drive off.

“All of this happened within a 15 minute window and I am a firm believer of karma.”

Mrs Bonneau has even contacted the local bus company and spoke to a bus driver who picked up passengers on the stop near to where the car was parked but was unsuccessful in finding out what happened.

“I am hoping that someone might have seen something but no one has. Without a third party, I can’t have a courtesy car or anything as there is no one to claim the damaged from.

“I have spent most of my week on the internet looking for a cheap running car and without one I would be totally stuck and my daughter goes to school in Shaw and we have a business in Bradford on Avon.

“At the end of the day, I had a car that meant everything to me and it was worth so much more than I would get on an insurance pay out.”

Mrs Bonneau is asking for people get in touch with the police if they saw anything on 101.