cycling collision with a car - what do we do next?

[manechanger]

dh cycles an hour each way to and from work. He's been cycling for about 4 years and has now been knocked off twice in three months.

The first time he had an elbow fracture and we contacted the insurance company. It was clearly driver's fault and quite clean cut although it's now going to court as driver seems to be going awol not so bothered about this one as what's done is done.

Anyway knocked off again this morning after overtaking standing traffic, car pulled out to do a u turn and dh went through the window with his head. Just got back from hospital having had glass pulled out and is ok so far. firstly I dont know if overtaking standing traffic will go against him but I would say it's careless driving as you should check mirrors before doing a u turn as it's an unexpected manouvre. Driver admitted liability at the scene but didn't when police got there. Also he'd like not to go through his insurance company and I think he's offered to cover costs but there are things like a day off work, not being able to cycle to work etc that also need to be considered. I don't know how to go about claiming nor how to work out how much, last time I called the insurance company but in this case how do we ensure he gets adequate compensation if not using insurance co?

Looking online it says we shouldn't contact insurers without using a lawyer but I would want to use a company with a bit of integrity at least and we do want to be compensated as these incidents are really stressful - last time it was the night before our holiday and it marred the entire holiday as we couldn't hire bikes and dh couldn't use the pools or do anyting active with the kids. Anyway, can anyone advise me on a course of action or give me details of trustworthy lawyers if needed?
Thanks

OP have the police said if they will be prosecuting the driver?

Viva I think it is the cardriver who doesn't want to go through his/her insurance. I guess that is for him to decide but he/she will have to declare the accident anyway when he/she comes to renewal... The OP, if it comes to that (hopefully not), can sue the driver and leave it up to the driver whether they involve their insurance company. It shouldn't make an difference to the OP really. I agree about claiming all resulting losses.

Personally I would also be pushing the police to pass the case to the CPS for a prosecution so that the driver is less inclined to injure another cyclist in the future through reckless driving. The next cyclist they hit might not be so lucky.

itsfab there is no reason to think that the OP has relevant insurance. Not many cyclists have insurance as they basically don't need it - their chances of injuring a third party are remote and, if they themselves are the ones who are hurt, it is the other person's insurance they will be claiming off.

Yes, sorry. I assumed the Ops dh has cycle insurance but then realised not many people do. As a cyclist in this situation I'd be contacting my insurance company as I'm insured. I guess if you're not all you can do is lawyer up and sue.

I've seen that cycling blog about why you don't see them when driving before. As a cyclist I was already watching people's heads and eyes at junctions. You can tell when somebody hasn't seen you. It was interesting to read the science behind that.
I ride 3 miles a day in one of the most cycling friendly cities in the UK. I am strongly thinking about a cycle camera. I would get enough for a great Youtube video in no time.
I was driving today though - nearly hit by a car coming the other way who had to pull right out on to my side of the road in order to get past a cyclist. The cyclist was signalling right and had been doing so and moving across the road for some time when the twat in the car decided he HAD to get past. He's bloody lucky the cyclist was wise to that brand of arse and didn't start his turn. The driver would probably have killed him.

helena that's scary and similar happened to a friend of mine who was riding up a main road with a small car holding back, the car behind overtook the small car then turned left immediately right into my friend. just cos he wasn't getting home fast enough.

Viva, dh doesn't have cycling insurance but i;m beginning to think he needs it, how much, how etc? can we go through our car insurance? guess probably not. he said police weren't interested, don't think they are planning to prosecute but he has witnesses, one is another cyclist. police were at scene and brought bike back home and had a good chat with the plasterer and reassured him that dh was fine obv plasterer was relieved not sure who they thought he was but i'm going for life partner.

just spoke to bil who has also been hit twice in last couple of years, he used lawyers. think we will do same, presume car driver can then decide if he wants to get his insurance involved or not.bil said lawyers organised medical assessment etc.

showed dh the fighter pilot article, very interesting but he uses flashing lights and is a really good scanner and driver and has been cycling quite a while and before that was doing the knowledge on a scooter so has quite a lot of experience. sadly I think the final sentiment is also true though I hope this car driver waits in the queue next time

I'm a member of the CTC and being a member gives you insurance. Think membership is £45 a year. You get a telephone helpline to legal advice as well as the actual cover.

great thanks that sounds like good value. he is getting it.

Apologies manechanger if you were offended by me assuming you had insurance.

Exactly the same thing happened to my DH last February - he was filtering past stationary traffic on his scooter when a van pulled out in front of him, u-turn without checking his mirrors
DH's leg was pretty mangled but apart from that he was okay thank goodness.
The driver hasn't admitted liability but it's still all being handled by the the insurance companies, no solicitors involved. We should get a compensation pay out in the next couple of months.
Hope your husband's okay and you get it all sorted.

Sorry! Just read your latest post, didn't realise you didn't have insurance, so I'm guessing it will be a different process for you.

hi not offended at all itsfab. he's the cyclist and i know little about it so i didn't realise there was specific cycling insurance but we will get it now. sorry jules that your dh was also involved in a similar collision but glad it has been sorted out in a straightforward way.

Sorry to hear about the accident. My DH was knocked off his bike when a car overtook and cut him up - unfortunately his leg was shattered so still has difficulties.

Look up the Ctc because they have recommendations off solicitors whether if not you have insurance. It's likely to be the sort if case where you font pay costs upfront but the solicitor charges a success fee from compensation.

Another cyclist here sending good wishes to your dh and you. Makes me so furious that this happens.

OP for your DH to get his claim moving, I'd suggest when he's feeling settled, he sits down & writes out everything he can remember happened. Where he started off from, where he was going, what his route was, how familiar he was with this route, what happened on the approach to where the collision happened, road layout & conditions, anything he can remember about what the car did i.e. any signal/indication to pull out, how soon before they pulled out that indicator might have been made, time between the indication made & the car pulling out, did he see the driver/notice him/his efforts to check before pulling out, details of any witnesses, what was said (that he can remember/heard). Basically, anything/everything that he can remember because if there is a dispute over fault, it's best to get as much detail written down while it's still fresh in his mind.

Assuming the police attended, you can contact them/the police officer & explain as he was a cyclist you don't have an insurer to act on your behalf & you need the ins details of the responsible driver (if you don't have them now). The police should also have a report on the incident, with details of anyone who came forward as a witness, if your DH was too out of it to be aware etc. or not in a position to get details while he was being attended to by ambulance etc.

You can either appoint your own solicitor or you can call the ins co direct. I'll assume the car driver hasn't reported the acc if he doesn't want to go thru ins, so you contacting them will be the starting point of getting the claim moving. You make the point when contacting them that you hold their insd at fault for failing to check/indicate before attempting a u turn etc. & giving your DH no chance to avoid a collision as he turned across his path. Tell them all the things you intend to include in your DH's claim - lost earnings, damage/repairs to bike, injury/treatment. It's entirely possible that if there is a chance of any scarring, or complications from a head injury, you'll need a solicitor to act in your DH's best interests as scarring & head injuries can be expensive claims & need tailored medical evidence to help determine the value of the claim. You can check if your household legal expenses cover extends to help fund the cost of a solicitor, maybe union membership might have legal cover - worth checking to see if you have the cover that would help.

1st thing to do - get the ins details & contact the ins co to get the claim moving.

Hope that helps.

yes that's very helpful. Effectively what you've suggested is what we did last time but more detailed. In a way we are currently in a better place with this one as he seems ok. I've just been worrying that as it can take a while for head injuries to take effect we really need to make sure that he is ok before holding back. For that reason we will go to lawyers to handle this for us and will pursue it as I think we need a proper medical assessment.

DH has details of the car driver and all the witnesses. the driver called him yesterday but dh didn't answer. I really feel for the driver, it must be quite a shock and I like to think he's calling because it's weighing on his mind. However being cynical I'm also wondering if he has a few accidents behind him or is uninsured which I would think inexcusable and would lead us to pursue this. I also think if you can't be arsed to wait in traffic and chuck a uey as a result then it implies a pretty impatient and careless driver. I think we wont talk to the guy and will screen calls. Our experience of the police last time was that we had to find out the insurance details ourselves as they are largely uninterested.

Viva ive just looked at ctc website. They aren't open today but it says it's 3rd party insurance which seems to cover damage the cyclist causes to others. Does that still mean they work on your behalf if someone else causes the accident? I'm going to start with asking them if as members they can look at these accidents retrospectively. I suspect they wont so then will look at the cycling silk blog, then try the lawyers the lcc recommended.

you can also complain if the police dont press charges. possibly complain is the wrong word i think the police are supposed to get driver to go to police station anyway with all documents after an accident to prove insurance etc

I think that's what happened witht he first one, the driver is now being taken to court because the registered owner of the car hadn't responded with the name of the driver

sorry that doesnt make sense i guess the owner is going to court

Do you have the vehicle reg no? Ins cos use the MID to trace ins details from the reg no - if you have that, check this link to find out how to get the ins details. There is a fee for individuals but you can claim that fee back as part of your claim too. So if you get no where with the police & the driver hasn't given you his details, then either you get the info thru MID or if you appoint a solicitor they'll get that for you.

link

yes,I used MID with the collision in august but that one is now going to court so I now wish there was someone else to monitor how it is going who understands the process. with this one I think I could do with someone else handling it in case something happens further down the line. i'm sure it will be straightforward but we are both working and don't ahve time to chase up claims as well as run a house and look after our kids. It took quite a lot of time last time and I guess that doesn't get compensated but Ive got quite a lot of other things I could be doing.

To be honest I think I'm quite angry about this now and i think if this guy was above board he would have just taken it on the chin and let his insurance deal with it especially as it sounds like he has to declare any accidents when he renews.

I think you are doing the right thing, having a solicitor do all the work is definitely less intrusive & time consuming. It would make life a lot easier if the driver had reported & simply passed on the relevant ins details/contact info, at the same time confirming he was at fault. But they rarely do unfortunately. The thing is, not reporting it doesn't stop it going on their policy as a fault accident - it just delays & frustrates the innocent party.

Hope you find a good solicitor.

Hello I was going to go to a no win no fee lawyer but then my mum (who volunteers at cab) suggeste using the legal bit of our home insurance. they will come back to me in 5 days to tell me if this is covered or not. I'm also able to get some legal advice about what we can claim which is free apparently.
I really feel clueless about this and also don't want to be unfair on the driver but dh had a slight temperature and headache over thew eekend. I was really worried that it might be delayed concussion and am now going to be paranoid that everything is as a result of this injury (not really helped by the fact that one of my siblings died of a head injury).

I am justifying this massively because I generally live and let live but I really don't want to find out that we have no income because there was a serious injury lurking further down the line and I think using official routes is a far better idea. Jules I missed your post before. I 'm glad it was a relatively simple procedure for you and I'm sorry for your husband.

Mane, if you are at all concerned about your DH then call NHS 24 & get advice. Don't worry about being worried, just follow the usual guidelines you would for any health issue that was a concern. There will be a period where he probably gets a bit worse before getting better, as that usually kicks in once the shock wears off & infections maybe get to wounds etc. As long as you just keep an eye & get advice if you are worried then I'm sure he'll be fine once he's recovered.

The benefit of pursuing this claim long term is that your DH will eventually get to see a specialist or 2 who will give him a thorough evaluation & examination to determine how long the recovery will likely be, and if there are any long term issues to consider. Anything that is more long term then equates to your DH getting whatever treatment he needs (paid for by the other ins co) & and long term losses associated with any complications will also form part of your claim. It's highly unlikely that will be an issue, especially if you see no change in your DH & the hospital have checked him over & discharged him. They wouldn't do that if there was something more serious. Obviously anything that gives you cause for concern, get advice, but try not to think the worse. Your DH has been very lucky in the grand scheme of things & hopefully he'll be back to full fitness soon.

Fingers crossed you've got the cover on your home ins as that's less of a worry for you & it'll be easier to let them do all the work.

Yet another bikist wish you and dh well. I too ride an hour each way in mainly an urban/city centre environment. Not been knocked off yet (about 4 years in) but not for want of driver carelessness.

Hope he recovers and keeps on spinning.