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AIBU?

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Original poster

SURELY DH didn't "run over" this cyclist??

364 replies

justanotherburd · 09/02/2017 21:02

I've namechanged

DH got into an accident with a cyclist this evening.

We live in a house with a cycle path going along in front of it- it goes driveway, path, pavement, road but the drive is at a sort of angle not directly in front of the house and we live next to a corner so the visibility is poor.

DH was going down the drive and road was clear. Looked right- clear, looked left, moved off of drive and then a cyclist smacked into the right of his car! He fell off his bike and DH jumped out to see if he was OK. Cyclist started yelling at him but DH thought he'd just got a shock, tried to calm him down and pick up the guy's bike. He then offered to drive the man to the hospital, cyclist refused, and the front of his bike was bent so he just walked away dragging the bike along.

DH then realised that the side panel of the car is quite scratched, but it's an old car and obviously that wasn't the first concern. Wrote it off to "life" and went off to work (he works evenings)

I had a phone call from police on the land line asking for DH though they wouldn't say why, gave them his mobile and he's just rung me saying they want to speak to him about leaving the scene of an accident after injuring this man!!! SURELY this isn't DH's fault?? He did everything he could and the man refused his help!!

I'm now angry as actually I think it WAS this cyclist's fault- and surely it was HIM that left the scene of him damaging our property! I saw what happened after the initial "bang" and then looking out upstairs window but was feeding DC and by the time I'd got downstairs the man had gone.

OP posts:
Motheroffourdragons · 10/02/2017 09:25

This reply has been deleted

This has been deleted by MNHQ to protect the privacy of the user.

garlicandsapphire · 10/02/2017 09:27

It's a bit of a distraction as the road is steep and it was pouring with rain. I happened to notice as I was getting out of my car and noticed how careful the car was being trying to inch out of the side road (much more cautious than cars are usually). It's a blind corner for the side road driver because of parked cars. It was at a standstill when the cyclist hit it. The cyclist tried to brake from quite a distance but was skidding on a very wet steep road before hitting the car. The cyclist admitted straightaway that he was going way too fast in those conditions. There was absolutely nothing the car could do to avoid being hit. If a mother and kids or old person had been trying to cross the road the cyclists would have knocked them down.

Cars and cyclists go way too fast down the road it is very dangerous.

Obviously all sides including the police agreed on the outcome. But as I said every one stayed at the scene till the police came - and we got blankets and tea for the cyclist.

Gildedcage · 10/02/2017 09:33

He wasn't reversing. The area of damage/impact to the car suggests he rode into the car. He cyclist should have stopped. Both parties are at fault to a degree

Laiste · 10/02/2017 09:44

Well. who ever looks into this officially i hope they have a better comprehension skills than a lot of the posters on here Grin

OMG he shouldn't have been reversing
Your driveway opening is too small
Your DH drove into a cyclist he's so wroooooooong!
He's so in the wrong to not have looked down the cycle lane.

We in fact have:
90 degree bend under 2 meters away.
Stationary car temporarily stopped.
Cyclist comes round the corner and runs into the door.

The only thing that baffles me is how the hell did the cyclist get up to a speed fast enough to cause that damage to his bike only one meter out of a 90 degree bend?

JanuaryMoods · 10/02/2017 09:47

A significant lack of bothering to read the actual facts seems to be occurring.
Hmm

Tiggles · 10/02/2017 09:48

The only thing that baffles me is how the hell did the cyclist get up to a speed fast enough to cause that damage to his bike only one meter out of a 90 degree bend
That's what I've been trying to work out too!

Maybe the OP should put up some 'concealed entrance' signs on the cycle path to warn future cyclists.

Laiste · 10/02/2017 09:53

Especially ones with turbo boost tiggles Grin

Olympiathequeen · 10/02/2017 09:56

Provided the cyclist was where he should have been on the road or a cycle path (and not the pavement,..... and even then it's not black and white, he could have hit a pedestrian) then of course it was DHs fault. He should have been looking right as he pulled out, not left in the direction of travel. He knows it's a blind corner so should have taken extra care.

Silly to say he looked right and the cyclist wasn't there, of course he was, he didn't materialise out of thin air. DH just wasn't looking. He was in the wrong and needs to contact his insurance company and pay.

CherrySkull · 10/02/2017 09:59

if the road is a blind bend, it wouldn't have mattered if he was looking, he still wouldn't have been able to avoid the collision if the cyclist came around the corner at speed. The car would have been in the way unless it was still entirely on the drive.

GallivantingWildebeest · 10/02/2017 10:01

It's up to the cyclist to make sure he's travelling at a safe speed and can stop if he's coming round a blind bend, though, isn't it?

It obviously wasn't safe for OP's DH to drive fast down his drive and onto the road. He was stationary with handbrake on at time of impact, so the cyclist rode into him. If cyclist is cycling, surely he should be familiar with the road he's on, and the fact that cars may come out of drives?

OP, do come back and update us. What did the police say?

FooFighter99 · 10/02/2017 10:13

The cyclist shouldn't have to slow down, he has full right of way

What? So a cyclist can just barrel along at any speed he likes and expect people and cars to just get out of his way?? What an absolutely moronic thing to suggest!

The cyclist has a responsibility to look for other road/pavement users just as mush as a pedestrian or car driver does. You can't exempt the cyclist from all responsibility. And he was obviously going at a fair speed if he's bent his bike out of shape and damaged the car!

GallivantingWildebeest · 10/02/2017 10:15

YY, FooFighter. I agree.

Olympiathequeen · 10/02/2017 10:17

WHAT??? It's the duty of the person using the public road to give way to someone entering the road from a private drive? Go and read the Highway Code. Clearly not drivers making this stupid comment. It's always the duty of the person entering a public road to ensure the safety of those already on the road.

FooFighter99 · 10/02/2017 10:18

Thanks Gallivanting

It seems "passing the blame" is becoming something of an Olympic Sport these days...

SpringerS · 10/02/2017 10:18

if you read though the original post and the thread, you will realise that the OP's DH had gone the end of the driveway and was stationary with the handbrake on........

If you read through the thread you will also read how the OP gave one version of events, was pretty much unanimously told her DH was in the wrong, then came back with an entirely different version of events. Tbh, that's just not very believable. Especially as she was blaming the cyclist in the OP despite the story in that post showing her husband to be at fault. And she keeps popping back on with new information that paints the cyclist in a worse and worse light.

It's possible the cyclist was at fault and the OP just completely garbled her story at the start but it's far more likely that she just really, really wants the cyclist to be at fault and is changing the story to suit that narrative. It's a classic case of the Rashomon Effect.

Olympiathequeen · 10/02/2017 10:18

If it was a pedestrian running along the pavement on a blind bend do they have to stop and allow cars entry into the road over the pavement?

FooFighter99 · 10/02/2017 10:22

That may be so Olympia, but there is still a place for common sense and courtesy, something that seems to be sorely lacking in society at the moment.

It's all me me me and stuff everyone else.

It sounds like the OP's DH made every effort to ensure the safety of those already on the road, but the cyclist appears to have been travelling at an excessive speed, so OP's DH didn't really stand a chance did he?

FooFighter99 · 10/02/2017 10:26

If I was running along a pavement I would stop to let a car entry onto the pavement/drive as that would be preferable to having both my legs broken by trying to run past as the car was trying to complete their manoeuvre. Regardless of who's right of way it is/was/should be.

GabsAlot · 10/02/2017 10:27

cyclsit shoudlnt have to slow down

what round a blind bend? what if that was a child waiting to cross an they hit them

whats the update op?

Olympiathequeen · 10/02/2017 10:27

How can a bicycle be doing excessive speed? He was going round a 90 degrees bend on a bike?

And how on earth does the OP or her DH know the speed? . I bicycle and just do normal speeds. I would not be able to stop instantly if I found a car blocking my cycle path.

Olympiathequeen · 10/02/2017 10:31

Why should the onus be on the cyclist to foresee a car blocking his path? He also couldn't see around the blind bend.

It's black and white I'm afraid and the one person not in the wrong was the cyclist. If I was a runner going round a blind ditto I would be aware a car was blocking the pavement.

The OPs DH was aware for a very long time this was a danger to other road users so should have fixed up a mirror or cut down hedges (if applicable) sooner.

Olympiathequeen · 10/02/2017 10:32

Should read. As a runner I wouldn't be aware a car was blocking the pavement.

SpringerS · 10/02/2017 10:34

There was absolutely nothing the car could do to avoid being hit.

Why couldn't the driver reverse back out of where it had no right to be stationary? I live with an almost identical set up to the OP, except my drive slopes down to the pavement and cyclepath. If I have my car stationary across either while I'm waiting for the road to clear and I see pedestrians or cyclists approaching who will reach me before I can move off, I reverse back on to my drive. I do not have a right to expect people who have a right to be on the pavement or cyclepath to slow down or stop for me, even if it means I miss a good gap on the road. It's their right of way, not mine.

Lulu1083 · 10/02/2017 10:35

Then you're going too fast Olympia.

myfavouritecolourispurple · 10/02/2017 10:36

If it was a pedestrian running along the pavement on a blind bend do they have to stop and allow cars entry into the road over the pavement

no, but as I said above, if I can hear a car engine as I run along a road with driveways, I have a look to see if I can see a car coming out of a driveway and usually do a bit of a dog-leg around the end of the drive (assuming a car isn't coming along the road). I prefer not to stop but obviously will if I have to because the driver hasn't seen me/has decided because they're driving a big metal box they can do what they like.