hit by car - he "didn't see" me

[Galaxy-Tourer]

So, here I am, in bed, bruised and battered.

It was quite a good crash, all in all - low speed, bonnet broke my impact and I slithered to the tarmac. Not sure what state the bike is in, the police wouldn't let me push it home. I now have a 2.5 mile walk to retrieve it.

do you want the Ins and Outs?

I was riding south, he was driving north, but indicating to turn right (east). This is on a busy shopping bit, with cars parked all over the place, and pulling out of side junctions w/o looking.

I saw him indicate, so assumed he was aware of me coming directly towards him. I glanced left to check for cars pulling out of the left hand junction, and then BANG! I'm on the floor.

I didn't even see him coming in my (highly attuned) peripheral vision, so he must have moved pretty quick.
Witnesses came over and I heard them saying "call an ambulance AND THE POLICE" so they must have been suspicious of careless driving, no?
Plods came, said it was "my word against his" and "he just didn't see me" and they "couldn't tell whose fault it was", despite witnesses saying he drove into me.

I am speechless with rage against the police (again). How clear cut do they need it? I had right of way, he didn't. He didn't give way to me, he drove into me, on my side of the road. Nope, it's out of their hands, not their decision.

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No good moaning though, it doesn't change anything.
All I've heard from relatives is "cycling is dangerous", "did you have a helmet on" (no, but wearing one wouldn't have prevented the crash so your remark is irrelevant and irritating) and worst of all "you should get a car".
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Thing is, what next? The driver told the police he was "happy to pay for any damage" (isn't that an admission of guilt, right there?).
I'm not a CTC member so won't use them. I have contacted (after a Google search) a couple of cycle-crash specialty lawyers - no win, no fee type of jobby.

Can anyone recommend a firm to take up my case? I'm not after oodles of cash, I just want that driver punished. If he has to sell his car to pay for my Galaxy, too bad. One less numpty on the road.

[Galaxy-Tourer]

Please: no lectures about how not all drivers are awful, nor lectures about helmets, etc etc.

I just would like a recommendation of what to do next, and which solicitors to use.

Some sympathy wouldn't go amiss though ... there's been precious little at home !!

[Edwards]

The CTC solicitors will take on non members. I can not remember the contact details.
The "I did not see you" in this situation could be used against the driver. What he is saying is he did not look properly.
Get in touch with the police station dealing with the case. As this is a clear case of different driving offences. If the constable dealing with this will not do more, inform him you want to see his superior.
If it is still not followed up refer to the Police Complaints Commission and inform the CPS.
The law does not like to see itself being used for personal punishment or vendettas so watch what you say on that point.
It is a good phrase to say "I only want justice to be seen to be done".
The driver was totally in the wrong, as any fool can see from your description. With nothing in mitigation as he said he did not look properly.

[Galaxy-Tourer]

The law does not like to see itself being used for personal punishment or vendettas so watch what you say on that point.

Sorry, I'm a bit concussed. What do you mean?

[Edwards]

Basically you do not say you want the driver to be punished. All the other people involved in this process think it is up to them to decide not you.
They can not back track a say it it not up to you.
Justice to be seen to be done, means if no action is taken you can then ask this simple question needing an explanation form them about how "justice was seen to be done".
The other good one is "I feel the driver should be called to account for their actions before the court". As this is your feelings you can not be told you are wrong.

[glueman]

I'm not clear, are you saying a vehicle turned right across your path and hit you? Or one drove out from a side junction on your left?
If it was the former I've had the same thing happen. Do you know whether the car hit you broadside (T-boned)? At best it sounds like a gross misjudgement of your speed, at worst the guy simply drove into you.

From your description it sounds like the police are negligent not to follow the case up, especially if you are concussed and not thinking properly. Not seeing someone is no excuse for not looking. Hand it to the CTC solicitors.

[stoobs]

I'm assuming you don't want to claim for injury? And you have details of witnesses? (If the police didn't collect details, file a formal complaint against them.)

If you just want to claim for the bike, then just send the driver a polite letter with an itemised bill, stating the circumstances of the incident. Wait 2 weeks.

Then see my posting on this forum:

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=9512&start=0

and this one:

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=10861&start=0

After 2 weeks, send another letter, this time giving a 2 week deadline and saying that you'll take it to small claims/fast track.

Stick by your guns. You don't have the same standards of proof applied in fast track. It's relatively informal.

And, keep us all posted!

[stewartpratt]

Some years ago I was (a passenger) in a collision very much like you describe, but where both vehicles were cars. I was in the car turning right. When the police arrived, there was from the outset no doubt whatsoever in their minds as to who was at fault: the driver of our car. He was turning across oncoming traffic, had no right of way, and had failed to observe the car with which we collided.

The situation is the same for you. You had right of way, the other driver did not, and it's one of those cases where blame is pretty much clear.

Stick to your guns.

[byegad]

Some years ago I was (a passenger) in a collision very much like you describe, but where both vehicles were cars. I was in the car turning right. When the police arrived, there was from the outset no doubt whatsoever in their minds as to who was at fault: the driver of our car. He was turning across oncoming traffic, had no right of way, and had failed to observe the car with which we collided.

The situation is the same for you. You had right of way, the other driver did not, and it's one of those cases where blame is pretty much clear.

Stick to your guns.

The is a fundemental fault in your argument.

You hit another car, the OP was on a bike. So the Police don't give a tinker's cuss!!

[patricktaylor]

... the OP was on a bike. So the Police don't give a tinker's cuss!!

Some truth in that, I think. The damage to the bike and car, and holding on to the witnesses are probably the key to the legal outcome.

FWIW, Galaxy-Tourer has my sympathy. It's the sort of thing that can happen to any of us. One encounters near-misses every week: drivers who move forward then stop at the last moment when they've seen you just in time. I've probably done it myself.

[glueman]

I went over the bonnet of a limo in Whitehall. His perspective was he had a long black car with a lickle flag on the front and he could drive where he liked. The driver's biggest concern was my bike was under his front wheels and impeding his forward progress. He told me I was, 'riding too fast'. Probably 15mph, impact speed half that.

I was younger and more naive then and he got off with £25 cash towards damages, which didn't nearly cover things once I had a close look. Get a solicitor on the case!

[NUKe]

If you weren't injured And all you want is the cost of the bike clothing etc. A letter to his insurance company will usuallydo the trick. Just state what you want. Bike bits costs clothing a brief description what happend. Usually things like this can be settled fairly quickly

[thirdcrank]

G-T

Most personal injury solicitors will pursue a claim on a 'no-win, no-fee' basis (This means that they only undertake claims which they hudge are likely to be successful. They anticipate recovering your costs from the other side, and if you lose, they stand the costs as the result of their own poor judgment. To avoid you being liable for the other sides costs if you were to lose, they take out an insurance policy, and the cost of that policy is either recovered from the other side, or the policy pays out to pay for itself. All clear?) It's best to pick a solicitor with some expertise in cycling matters. Several advertise in the cycling press. The CTC soliciotrs Russell Jones and Walker, one of the biggest personal injury solicitors in the country, trades on the internet as Claims Direct. http://www.claimsdirect.co.uk/ No need to be a CTC member to use them. Action of this type leads to a claim for compensation, not punishment of the driver.

If you do decide to go to a solicitor, do so immediately, not months down the line. As others have said, you can negotiate directly with the driver's insurance company but I'd advise against that. You have no idea what would be a fair settlement of your claim. Insurance companies are notorious for bullying and dragging their feet, especially when dealing with members of the public. They will not mess about if approached by a solicitor, partly because they know that solicitors' fees operate like the clock on a taxi so prevarication and procrastination cost them £££.

I'm a bit unclear about the circumstances - witnesses calling an ambulance but the police preventing you from pushing the bike when you walked home.

Witnesses can be very fickle - shouting their mouths off at the scene then melting away when police notebooks come out. Many of those who shout loudest have often witnessed nothing - they've heard a bang or similar then put 2 + 2 together. OTOH, if the police don't even try to investigate, then it will never be anything more than your word against his. There has been a trend for many years for the police to investigate fewer collisions and I'm not sure what the current criteria are.

If you are unhappy about the way the police have dealt with this, you can always complain. You can now even do this on line: http://www.ipcc.gov.uk/ Before you do complain, spend a bit of time identifying what you feel was done wrong eg inadequate investigation which led to independent witnesses present at the scene not being interviewed and their details recorded.

[Ivor Tingting]

Sorry to read of your misfortune. Hope you mend quickly. Go to your GP to get all your injuries recorded. He/she will recommend further treatment if necessary such as physiotherapy and also tetanus boosters. You may also suffer post traumatic stress. Mild, moderate or severe. I did when some idiot drove into the back of me on a roundabout in 1999. Both my bike and me were a mess.

Take lots of pics of your injuries, of your bike and the scene. Keep a diary. Try to establish identities and contact details of independent witnesses. Get the insurance details of the other party, if not obtain from the police. If they continue to be useless or obstructive then make a complaint to the Chief Constable and cc the IPCC. Sadly your experience so far seems to be symptomatic of their indifferent and indolent attitude to law enforcement. Sounds like at least the driver should be reported for careless driving and prosecuted. I would definitely complain. Get your MP involved if need be.

As already stated get a cycling solicitor involved within a week I would say. RJW solicitors will take your case on whether you're CTC member or not. Personally I would look around and speak with a few. Cycling Weekly has a few that advertise in the back plus the LCC magazine. Ring up a few to see what they have to say. Read any conditional fee agreement carefully before you sign. Anything you are unsure of ask. Also ask for an estimate of costs and whether liability is an issue which will affect the fees the solicitor will charge. It is pretty hard for the average Joe to deal with an insurance company without a solicitor. Claims in the small claims court max out at £5k but only £1k for personal injury. You may also have other expenses such as loss of earnings to consider and medical treatments. PI cases by their nature can take a long time to conclude as prognosis can take time and recovery may be drawn out. You should also be compensated if your injuries don't fully heal and you are left with residual pain or restricted movement. Pain Suffering and Loss of Amenity is what it is legally known as. Therefore you should choose a cycling and PI specialist solicitor to gain adequate compensation.

Make a list of damage to all your property bike, clothing, helmet and shoes. Also get receipts for all out of pocket expenses. If you need to pay for other means transport to get around then keep receipts. But you must mitigate your losses. Recover your bike asap and get it to a bike shop for assessment to decide whether repair is economically or practically worthwhile. It may still be a good source of spares mind so hang onto it.

What else. Don't try and soldier on. If something is now difficult or too painful to do get help and if you have to pay for it so be it. Once you have signed up with a solicitor they should be able to get you an interim payment(s) from the other side's insurers pretty quickly if liability is not in dispute which looks like it on your case.

A speedy recovery.

Good luck.

[thirdcrank]

One thing I forgot to mention is to check that you do not already have some insurance or similar which entitles you to legal assistance. One of the most common sources is union membership but that is only one example.