Lawson Bates is feeling “grateful” after walking away from a car accident unscathed.

The Bringing Up Bates star, 29, was involved in a car accident Thursday evening in Knoxville, Tenn. while driving to pick up his fiancée Tiffany Espensen from a wedding planning appointment, Bates’ rep tells PEOPLE.

“Out of the blue a car turning left onto the main highway slammed into my passenger side,” he says in a statement. “I am so grateful I had not picked [Espensen] up yet, as that would’ve been her seat.

“Life can change so fast, and I was quickly reminded of that. Although the car is completely totaled, I’m feeling very grateful to be ok, and relieved the other driver was alright as well. Definitely grateful for God’s protection today!” Bates adds.

“Getting to know Tiffany — her heart, her passions, and her dreams — has been the greatest joy of my life, and we have been making so many wonderful memories together over the past year,” Bates told PEOPLE at the time.

“It has been a roller coaster of a few days so far, from our first stop at the Colosseum in Rome, to a Vespa ride through the Siena countryside, to a lovely evening dinner in San Gimignano, to a horse and carriage ride through Florence — all leading up to the main reason I’m here: asking Tiffany if she would spend the rest of her life by my side,” he added.

Although she said the engagement was a pleasant surprise, Espensen noted that she started to pick up on some hints.

“I knew something was suspicious when Lawson became awfully secretive with texts and planning with others,” Espensen said. “However, he still blew me away with this surprise! To travel to Italy for any occasion is a dream, but especially for an engagement.