Collision with another bicycle

[DZONIS5]

Hello everyone. Yesterday evening while driving in my local park I got into front collision with another bicycle. He was going downhill and I was going uphill and there was sharp turn with trees obstructing the view. I thunk my bike is alright and I just got few bruisea/scratches. Another cyclist got a bump on eyebrow and bent front wheel. At first we were almost going our separate ways when he noticed a bent wheel. I gave him my details and after that he kept telling me to look at that bump on the head and that I will need to fix his bike. Haven't heard anything from him yet. But what should I expect ?

[Vorpal]

Driving in a local park? Driving your bicycle?

Why does the other cyclist think you should fix his bicycle?

[DZONIS5]

I meant riding, sorry my English is not perfect. Because he thinks it's my fault, according to him I was at the wrong side of the road/track/path.

[beardy]

Are you a CTC member?

If so then you have insurance for any such incident and can just let them handle it.

Other wise you have to agree between the pair of you what to do or take it to small claims court.
Which is probably too much hassle for anybody to go through with just over a buckled wheel.
Though somebody will do that if they see it as a point of principle!

[DZONIS5]

No I'm not a member of CTC and I don't have insurance for such incident. Oh guess I'll just need to wait for him to get in touch than to hear what he decided to do.

[beardy]

to hear what he decided to do

He doesnt have the freedom to do whatever he likes.

You can refuse to pay if you dont agree it was your fault, you can offer to pay a part if you feel it was joint fault and you can object to the cost of the repair if it is excessive.

If he doesnt like your offer he has to take you to small claims court at which point you could put in a counter-claim for damages to yourself.

So best to solve it through mutual agreement about what is right but if you can not it would eventually go to a Judge and that will probably cost one or both of you more than a wheel. If somebody is unreasonable in settling the dispute then they may end up paying the court costs.
Most people try and avoid involve getting involved in such actions, certainly over a wheel. So a polite refusal to pay because you dont accept it is your fault would probably be the end of it. If they get angry then they may go to court.

[DZONIS5]

Well I meant I'll wait for him to see what he has to say if he will contact me at all.

Thank you guys for these incredibly quick replies. Appreciate it.

[Psamathe]

I would think that if the other cyclist is trying to hold you liable for the accident it would depend on the detail of what happened i.e. who was positioned where, going how fast with what visibility, etc. And there are aspects of cycling in a safe manner, so, if there was a sharp blind bend and one cyclist was approaching downhill (going fast) there is always the possibility that there could be some hazard round the corner that the fast cyclist would have to be able to stop for (e.g. although a cycle path it does not mean it is always guaranteed clear - so there is always the chance that you'd meet a pedestrian or a baby in a buggy (not meant to be there but lots of things happen that are not meant to happen). And if said fast cyclist was going too fast for the conditions then they could in some respects he held at least partially responsible.

But that all depends on the details and that is something very difficult or impossible to accurately describe on a forum (video recording works but otherwise the best is your own perception of what happened and impossible to describe anyway).

Ian

[Phil Fouracre]

Without details, difficult to comment, but? He was going downhill and you up, too fast perhaps. Why his assumption about your liability? 50/50 at worst. I'd suggest just in case he comes back at you, try and write down as much info as you can remember about the incident. Time, relative positions, speeds anything remotely relevant that could be used if it goes any further, which I very much doubt in view of the damage and potential costs involved. Best of luck

[Vorpal]

Even if you were on the wrong side of the path, it doesn't necessarily mean that you are entirely a fault. If he was going downhill, was he going to fast to stop? Did he say anything, or make any attempt to avoid the accident?

[shouldbeinbed]

you should exchange details not just one person give theirs over, that could be spun as an admission of fault by a smooth talker, also did you apologise or admit to anything at the scene that will come back to bite and be used as an acceptance of liability by you?

were there any witnesses? has the park got CCTV? - if you don't know, find a contact number/person for the park administration and ask & ask for the footage before it gets wiped over if it exists.

I would worry more about him highlighting the bump on his head to you, an injury compensation claim will be far more expensive than trueing or replacing a wheel.

Check if your household insurance policy has legal cover or covers for accidents/3rd parties away from the home. Are you a member of a trade union with a legal service option?
If not then you could find one of these half an hour free consultation solicitor and have a quick chat to be sure what your options are if they do come back, Also find out and discuss what the by laws/regulations for the park are and how they may influence any further interaction.

Were you on the wrong side of the path? which is the wrong and right side? Is it lined off or is he trying to apply road markings and etiquette to a non road? is there any sign or instruction in the park that instructs anyone that there is a right or wrong side to be cycling? Should either of you be cycling in it at all?

Make clear and detailed notes now and be sure to include visibility, condition on the ground, go back and check where the other rider came from, you mention trees, could it have been a bit shaded/wet on the ground at the time that caused him to take the bend poorly or fail to stop in time? take photos.

Hypothetically if you were an old lady using a a zimmer frame, or a parent with a pushchair or walking with a dog on a lead..... was he going downhill, unsighted, too fast to have stopped or avoided you if he'd suddenly found you in his path? were you trying to break the Tour de France climbing speed record and bombing uphill in a reckless manner, were you wobbling or zig zagging and being a nuisance generally on the path or simply making your way up on a straight and consistent line? How does he decide it is your fault?

All in all unless there are witnesses that one of you was being reckless &/or there are published rules for cycling etiquette in the park that can be demonstrated that one of you has broken and the other not then it sounds like an unfortunate example of s**t happens.

[[XAP]Bob]

Household insurance is often appropriate for this kind of thing.

Most paths don't have a "correct" or "wrong" side, coming downhill you do need to take care round corners, I'm teaching my 6 year old that at the moment...

[drossall]

Another vote for household insurance.

Many years ago, I collided with another rider on the Stevenage cycle paths. It was definitely his fault - he shot out of a blind side path over white lines. My bike was a write off (bent forks, the lot) although, luckily for me, I landed on him and wasn't hurt

There was never a serious chance of claiming against the other rider - I didn't take details, and didn't really think of it.

However, as I was dragging the remains of my bike the short distance back to work for recovery, I passed a security guard on another site. He sympathised, and recommended a household-insurance claim. He was quite right - they paid in full for a replacement, no questions asked. And household policies do often have some legal cover.

[The fat commuter]

What sort of bike was he riding? What was the make and model? You could find that the cost of the buckled wheel is next to nothing - well, £20 or £30. Let's put it this way, I doubt that he'd be riding around the local park on a bike suitable for the Tour de France.

[iviehoff]

I had a similar situation once, though on the other side. I had a wheel wrecked due to collision with pedestrian who ran out (literally) into the road. I was not going fast. The wheel was far from new - it was probably a £70 wheel originally but a court would take off depreciation, probably at rather a high rate. For example, a bike thief was apprehended (rare case) and my friend was awarded by the court only a third of the value of the new bike in compensation for the stolen bike, reckoning that was the secondhand value of a bike a few years old. I decided it was just a waste of time trying to enforce payment of a small amount of money, on someone who had probably provided me a false contact anyway. The fact he was exceedingly uncooperative and unwilling to accept responsibility at the scene suggested it just wasn't worth it. Maybe your collider feel the same when he has had time to think about it. At the end of the day, since enforcement is impractical over such small sums, it is really down to the good will of the other party.