Red Velvet’s Yeri has shared new details about the car accident she suffered with fellow member Seulgi in October 2016, explaining that the incident was far more serious for her than the public description at the time suggested.

Yeri discussed the accident with Seulgi in a September 16, 2026 video on her Yerimiese YouTube channel. During the conversation, she described being thrown forward inside the taxi, suffering a significant injury around her eye, spending a long period in hospital and dealing with lasting visual symptoms.

The new account has attracted attention because SM Entertainment’s statement in October 2016 described the incident as a minor car accident involving bruising and minor injuries.

There is, however, an important correction to the viral framing of the story: the accident itself was not kept secret by SM Entertainment for ten years. Contemporary Korean reports carried SM’s explanation the day after the crash. What remained largely unknown to the public was the fuller extent of Yeri’s personal injury and recovery.

Key Details

Official Statement

In October 2016, SM Entertainment told Korean media that Yeri and Seulgi had been returning to their dorm by taxi after a break when the taxi collided with a garbage truck near Seongsu-dong.

According to the statement reported by Soompi, the agency said the members had suffered bruising and minor injuries. They went to a hospital, received treatment and were expected to rest while recovering.

Dong-A Ilbo published a separate report the same day and likewise quoted SM’s description of the accident and the members’ injuries.

That historical record is important because it establishes that the accident was publicly acknowledged in 2016. The present news story is therefore about new details, not the discovery that an accident had been hidden from the public.

What Yeri Revealed in 2026

Nearly a decade after the accident, Yeri and Seulgi revisited what happened while appearing together on Yeri’s YouTube channel.

Yeri recalled that the two had planned to visit Lotte World during the Halloween period. According to coverage of the video, the park was crowded, so they abandoned the plan after taking a picture with someone dressed as a zombie and returned toward their dorm by taxi.

The crash happened as the taxi was negotiating a curve.

Yeri explained that Seulgi and the driver were positioned on the inside of the turn while Yeri was on the outside. She said the force of the impact threw her forward.

That positioning appears to be central to why the two members remember the accident differently. Seulgi described herself as not being seriously injured, while Yeri described a much more painful experience.

According to the account reported from the video, Yeri said the white part of her eye became extremely red and that the eye appeared somewhat sunken. She also said she spent a long period in hospital receiving treatment.

Yeri said she seriously considered whether to have surgery but ultimately decided against it.

These details were not included in the brief public description issued after the accident in 2016. That is the key difference between the old public record and Yeri’s new account.

The Emotional Impact

Yeri also spoke about the emotional effect of the recovery period.

She said that while she was hospitalized for a long time, she became depressed and found the period difficult to endure.

This should be understood as a personal account of her experience, not as an independently diagnosed mental-health condition.

The conversation also indicates that the accident affected both members’ relationship with car travel. Current reports from the video say Yeri and Seulgi described experiencing some degree of car-related trauma after the crash.

That point is particularly significant because it demonstrates that the accident was not simply a one-day event followed by an immediate return to normal life.

Yeri Says She Still Sees Floaters

One of the most striking details from the 2026 discussion concerns Yeri’s vision.

She said she still sees things resembling dust or shadows moving in her vision and that she was told they were floaters. She also said she had been told that there was nothing that could be done about the issue.

KpopBio is treating this carefully because the statement comes from Yeri’s own account. There is no public medical report accompanying the discussion that independently confirms the diagnosis, cause or current prognosis.

The appropriate journalistic wording is therefore “Yeri said she continues to experience floaters”, rather than presenting a medical conclusion as independently established fact.

What Was Publicly Known in 2016?

The original accident was reported on October 11, 2016.

SM’s account said the two members had been riding in a taxi when the vehicle collided with a garbage truck. The agency described their injuries as bruising and minor injuries, said they had received hospital treatment and announced that they would rest and focus on recovery.

The contemporary reporting also shows that the accident affected Yeri’s schedule.

Soompi later reported in December 2016 that Yeri had been unable to participate in ongoing Red Velvet promotional activities following the accident, including the 2016 Melon Music Awards.

This means that while the full severity of Yeri’s experience was not publicly detailed, the accident and its immediate consequences were very much part of the public record.

Timeline

October 10, 2016 – The accident

Yeri and Seulgi were traveling in a taxi near Seongsu-dong after their break when the taxi collided with a garbage/cleaning truck.

October 11, 2016 – SM comments publicly

SM Entertainment told Korean media that the members suffered bruising and minor injuries, had received medical treatment and would temporarily rest.

Late 2016 – Yeri misses schedules

Yeri remained away from some group activities while recovering, including the 2016 Melon Music Awards.

December 7, 2016 – Yeri reassures fans

Yeri posted through Red Velvet’s official Instagram account that she was doing well, eating properly and feeling healthy.

September 16, 2026 – New firsthand account

Yeri revisited the accident with Seulgi on the Yerimiese YouTube channel and described the injury and recovery in much greater detail.

September 17, 2026 – New reports spread

Complex and International Business Times Singapore published reports highlighting the difference between the 2016 “minor accident” description and Yeri’s 2026 account.

September 18, 2026 – KpopBio report

KpopBio publishes this independently researched account, separating confirmed historical reporting from Yeri’s newly disclosed personal details.

What Is New in This Story?

The new information is not that Red Velvet’s Yeri was involved in a car accident.

Fans already knew that.

The new information is how Yeri says the accident affected her physically and emotionally.

In 2016, the public-facing description emphasized minor injuries. In 2026, Yeri described an eye injury that she regarded as serious, a long hospitalization, the possibility of surgery, continued visual floaters and the difficult emotional experience of recovering.

That creates a much fuller historical picture.

It also demonstrates why short agency statements do not necessarily represent every detail of an artist’s private recovery. At the same time, the available evidence does not establish that SM intentionally concealed those details.

Why the “SM Kept It Secret” Claim Needs Caution

The phrase “SM Entertainment kept it secret for 10 years” sounds definitive, but it goes beyond the evidence.

The accident was publicly reported in 2016, and multiple Korean outlets carried comments attributed to SM Entertainment the following day.

What appears to have been missing from the public record was the fuller account Yeri has now chosen to share herself.

There is a meaningful editorial difference between:

“SM secretly hid the accident for ten years.”

and

“Yeri says the accident was much more serious for her than the minor-injury description reported in 2016.”

The second statement is supported by the available evidence. The first is not.

Previous Context

The 2016 crash occurred during the promotional period for Red Velvet’s “Russian Roulette.” Contemporary reports noted that Yeri and Seulgi had recently completed a round of group activities before the accident.

Yeri’s recovery also had visible effects on Red Velvet’s schedule. Her absence from the 2016 Melon Music Awards was noted in subsequent reporting, while Yeri later reassured fans about her health in December.

There was also an earlier public indication that the accident had psychological effects beyond the immediate injury. A 2017 report said Yeri had previously spoken about being unable to sleep comfortably in cars because she worried about safety after the accident. That report attributed the discussion to MBC’s radio program.

This makes the 2026 discussion an expansion of an existing story, rather than the first indication that the accident had lasting consequences.

What Is Confirmed vs. Unconfirmed

Confirmed

Yeri and Seulgi were involved in a taxi accident on October 10, 2016.

The taxi collided with a garbage/cleaning truck near Seongsu-dong.

SM Entertainment publicly described the injuries at the time as bruising and minor injuries and said the members received hospital treatment.

Yeri recently discussed the accident again with Seulgi on her own YouTube channel.

Yeri described an eye injury, prolonged hospitalization and continuing visual symptoms during that conversation.

Reported

Current coverage says Yeri described the white of her eye becoming intensely red, her eye appearing somewhat sunken and the injury causing lasting floaters. These details come from Yeri’s own account as reported by current media.

Not Confirmed

It has not been established that SM Entertainment deliberately concealed the accident.

It has not been established publicly what specific medical diagnosis Yeri received, what exact treatment was performed, or whether a doctor formally recommended surgery.

It has not been independently medically verified that her current visual symptoms are medically permanent.

No new SM Entertainment statement responding specifically to Yeri’s September 2026 account was identified in the sources reviewed for this article.

Latest Update

The latest verified development is Yeri’s September 16, 2026 discussion with Seulgi.

The conversation provides substantially more detail about the personal consequences of the 2016 crash than the original agency statement did. Current reporting published September 17 has brought those details to wider international attention.

As of the September 18 publication of this KpopBio report, the available evidence supports reporting the difference between the two accounts but does not support describing the accident as a secret that SM concealed for ten years.

What Happens Next

No specific follow-up action from SM Entertainment has been publicly established in the sources reviewed.

The most relevant next development would be any direct statement from SM Entertainment addressing Yeri’s new account.

Unless such a statement appears, the safest editorial position is to treat Yeri’s comments as her firsthand account of the accident and distinguish them from the agency’s original 2016 characterization.

Reader Takeaway

The important new fact is simple: Yeri has now explained that the 2016 Red Velvet car accident was much more serious for her than the short public description at the time suggested.

The historical record also makes one point equally clear: the accident itself was publicly reported in 2016.

The story therefore concerns a fuller disclosure of the injury and recovery, not the discovery of an accident that had remained completely hidden for a decade.

Frequently Asked Questions

Was Red Velvet’s Yeri in a car accident in 2016?

Yes. Yeri and Seulgi were involved in a taxi accident on October 10, 2016, near Seoul’s Seongsu-dong area. Their taxi collided with a garbage/cleaning truck.

Did SM Entertainment publicly report the accident?

Yes. Contemporary reports on October 11, 2016 quoted SM Entertainment describing the accident and saying the two members suffered bruising and minor injuries.

What did Yeri newly reveal in 2026?

Yeri described a much more serious personal injury, particularly involving her eye. She said she was hospitalized for a long period, considered surgery and continues to experience visual floaters.

Did SM Entertainment definitely hide Yeri’s injury for ten years?

That has not been established. The accident itself was publicly acknowledged in 2016. The available evidence shows that Yeri’s fuller account of her injury and recovery was not publicly detailed at that time; it does not prove an intentional ten-year cover-up.

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