Vandals leave NHS worker in tears after causing £1,000 worth of damage to her car in Bedhampton

Kim Tull, who has worked as a healthcare support worker at Queen Alexandra Hospital for more than eight years, discovered the damage outside her house in Mitchell Road on Sunday morning.

The key worker was on her way to visit her mother, who suffers from dementia and lives in Leigh Park, when the sight of her vandalised Peugeot 3008 caused her to burst into tears.

The 51-year-old said: I had got up early in the morning to help my mum when I found the scratch.

‘It was from the front bumper to the back lights. It was quiet deep - it had clearly been done deliberately.

‘I’ve never had my car damaged like this before.

‘When I found it I burst into tears. It was quiet distressing. I felt sick – it was gut wrenching.’

Kim has owned the car for less than eight weeks - and had not driven for three weeks as she was recovering from a suspected case of Covid-19.

The mother-of-two said: ‘I had a high temperature and all the other symptoms – I was feeling dreadful. But I wasn’t able to be tested, and I’m still waiting to see if I can get tested.’

A Facebook post explaining the damage led to Neil Perkins, owner of Perkins Automotive in Waterlooville, to contact the healthcare worker with an offer of help.

Kim said: ‘He quoted the damage as costing more than £1,000, but he did it at a knocked down price. It was an incredibly generous offer.

‘I baked him and his staff a whole tray of chocolate cupcakes to say thank you.

‘I cannot thank them enough for their speed and their compassion.’

Repair centre owner Neil got Kim back on the road in less than two days, and asked for a fraction of the fee, so he could provide his staff with pizza and drinks at the end of the week.

Speaking about the damage, he said: ‘It was definitely vandalism – there were some light marks and deep scratches from uneven pressure being applied.

‘These vandals don’t realise they are hurting nurses, who are risking their lives for us.’

It comes after the businessman undertook £600 worth of repairs on car belonging to a Waterlooville nurse for free.

He said: ‘We just want to help as much as possible. It’s hard seeing people update.’

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