Regis Philbin’s insurance company will be shelling out $2,700 for a recent accident in which the celebrity backed into a police car after attending a party and dining on Greenwich Avenue, according to the town’s Fleet Department. The police car was out of service for nearly two weeks after the Nov. 12 accident as the town’s Fleet Department worked to repair the minor damage on the vehicle.
“The vehicle has been repaired and is already back in service,” said Jeff Wash, fleet operations assistant for the town. Philbin discussed the accident on his television show, “Live with Regis and Kelly,” the morning after, telling the audience how embarrassed he felt after bumping into the police vehicle.
“I smacked right into a police car,” Philbin told the audience. “I was so embarrassed, I said, ‘I can’t believe it.’ ” Philbin, who has a home in Greenwich, even went so far as to hold up a hand-drawn map of the parking situation on Greenwich Avenue and the vehicle next to him that he said obstructed his view.
Officer Ernest Mulhern was patroling the Avenue on Nov. 12 around 9:40 p.m. when he stopped at the Grigg Street intersection to let Philbin’s Lexus sport utility vehicle back out of his spot.
Philbin said he attended a party at Pirri International Hair company at 181 Greenwich Avenue and then went to dinner across the street. He told the audience he was backing up slowly and carefully because he could not see past a Cadillac Escalade parked next to him. However, the talk show host managed to back right into Mulhern’s patrol car, causing damage to its left front side, including the headlight, according to the accident report.
The police patrol car was repaired at Cunningham Grocer C Auto Body Shop at 74 N Water St., according to Wash. It was brought in for repair a day following the accident and was back in service on Nov. 26, Wash said.
No one was injured in the fender bender and Philbin walked away with a written warning and no fine. Philbin told his audience the police officer “was nice enough about it,” but noted that his wife was not happy with him. According to Wash, the $2,700 tab will be picked up by Philbin’s insurance company.
