Advice please on RTA & claiming damages

[jcdenton08]

I was yesterday involved in a road traffic accident as the front passenger. My girlfriend was driving, we were going a steady 25mph in torrential rain up a hill on the way for a sunday lunch. A cyclist pulled out from between two parked cars and started cycling up the hill almost parallel to the car, he then suddenly swerved across the front of the car without indicating to enter a cul de sac. He was exiting from left to right and went straight across the front of the car. Luckily, the driver slammed on the brakes and swerved slightly however he was hit, and mounted the bonnet, smashing the windscreen and causing chassis damage on the bonnet.

There were three witnesses who all gave statements to the police saying they'd seen what happened, additionally the cyclist made a statement to the police saying it was his fault and he had not indicated. My girlfriend driving the vehicle then was taken in the PC's car and read her rights then gave a statement. The PC then said this would corresponded with the cyclist and witnesses statements, so there would likely be no further action unless the cyclist suddenly changes his story. She was also breathalised but registered no reading.

The cyclist also told the PC who took the statement that he'd been out drinking the night before to celebrate his 18th birthday and lost his wallet and keys, and I could smell alcohol on his breath when checking he was okay after the accident. He was not wearing a helmet.

The cyclist was taken away in a neck brace and on a stretcher by the ambulance, and the PC told my girlfriend he'd call either yesterday or today to keep us informed (which so far hasn't happened).

When we crashed she slammed on and the impact through me forward then back and I suffered a whiplash on the right side of my neck. I work in an office job and am on a probabationary period at work so I can't afford another day off work, and I'm due back in tomorrow.

Would it be worth making a claim? I need to work so can't afford any time off, but my neck is very painful and was very stiff this morning when I woke up.

The only thing that concerns me is I've been told cyclists don't need insurance, therefore I'd have to claim off my girlfriend's insurance - something she is totally unwilling to do, as she has 8 years no claims and would have to pay £500.00 excess - and she reckons it would also double her premiums.

Any advice would be very welcome.

 

[Deleted User X18H]

Yeah go ahead make a private prosecution. This will cost you and arm and a leg and will be a pain in the neck. You will need to prove how you have been inconvenienced in proportion to the amount you are claiming for, so going back to work cos you're on probation, one day later, will in all likelihood be laughed out of court. However not going back to work cos you are in so much pain and therefore you lose your job for non attendance might give you a case. Brinkmanship is the watch word.

 

[Dave the OAP]

why was she " read her rights" in the Police car?

Was she arrested?

 

[jcdenton08]

Yeah go ahead make a private prosecution. This will cost you and arm and a leg and will be a pain in the neck. You will need to prove how you have been inconvenienced in proportion to the amount you are claiming for, so going back to work cos you're on probation, one day later, will in all likelihood be laughed out of court. However not going back to work cos you are in so much pain and therefore you lose your job for non attendance might give you a case. Brinkmanship is the watch word.

Pain and suffering and loss of earnings are treated as seperate arguments though. If I was doing a manual job or anything where I wasn't sat on my arse very still looking straight at a screen and I wouldn't be fit to work anyway.

 

[Gwylan]

You could sue the cyclist if he admits it was his fault, however, as he probably doesn't have insurance you could be suing a person of straw (ie someone without any assets) so I wouldn't hold my breath getting money out of him - unless he's the heir to a fortune or something. So, if you don't want to get the money from your girlfriend's insurance company, you might be unlucky,

The cyclist is an idiot though and could find himself in trouble (you can be fined for being drunk in charge of a bicycle, it happened to a friend of mine) - not that that's much consolation to you.

 

[Mellotron]

It does seem odd to me that people who don't have to have insurance share the road with people who do have to.

 

[jcdenton08]

why was she " read her rights" in the Police car?

Was she arrested?

No. Luckily one of the witnesses was a PCSO who explained to me the process for an RTA which involved an injured victim. Because he was hurt she had to make a statement which was noted word for word in case the guy decided to change his story, then the statement would be used in evidence.

"You do not have to say anything, but anything you do say may be given in evidence."

The caution in England and Wales does not explicitly require that a suspect affirm they understand the caution. So when my girlfriend said "Yeah I understand" the PC wrote down "Yeah I understand" on the accident sheet.

 

[beorhthelm]

The only thing that concerns me is I've been told cyclists don't need insurance, therefore I'd have to claim off my girlfriend's insurance - something she is totally unwilling to do, as she has 8 years no claims and would have to pay £500.00 excess - and she reckons it would also double her premiums.

isnt this what you have insurance for? if you are genuinly injured and need cash to cover you now, thats the only option. you could make a claim against the cyclist, once it gets to court (months away) he'll probably only have to pay some token amount each month as he's bound to be a student/low paid, so you wont get anything to cover loss of earning when you need it.

you wouldnt need to "pay" the excess to yourself, it would be deducted from any award. loss of no-claims is a pain, but i expect it wouldnt be all of it, check with the insurer (carefully, so as not to actually make a claim on record...)

 

[happypig]

Shit happens. you could have hurt yourself falling over. take some ibuprofens and go to the hosp to get a neck brace if you need one. Stop trying to turn a profit out of a minor f*** up.
Bloody ambulance chasers

 

[Garage_Doors]

She is going to have to claim on her insurance to get the repairs to the car anyway so she will have to cough up the £500 excess and claim it back off the cyclist. (Probably awarded £1 a week by the courts)

If you had been wearing a seat belt it would have prevented you from being "thrown" forward.
Sound like your looking to claim for the sake of it, as it appears to be the done thing today, where there’s a claim that a blame.
Think you have been very lucky for the cyclist to admit it,

Why have you made a point about the cyclist not wearing a helmet ? is it relevant

 

[Dirk lovelace]

Hang on a minute, despite the circumstances, the fact is your Girlfriend has driven into the back of the cyclist. I could be wrong but this will always be seen has the fault of the driver behind.

 

[jcdenton08]

Piss poor replies in the last three. Everything you asked there I answered in the original post. Please re-read it slowly.



"I was yesterday involved in a road traffic accident as the front passenger. My girlfriend was driving, we were going a steady 25mph in torrential rain up a hill on the way for a sunday lunch. A cyclist pulled out from between two parked cars and started cycling up the hill almost parallel to the car, he then suddenly swerved across the front of the car without indicating to enter a cul de sac. He was exiting from left to right and went straight across the front of the car. Luckily, the driver slammed on the brakes and swerved slightly however he was hit, and mounted the bonnet, smashing the windscreen and causing chassis damage on the bonnet.

There were three witnesses who all gave statements to the police saying they'd seen what happened, additionally the cyclist made a statement to the police saying it was his fault and he had not indicated. My girlfriend driving the vehicle then was taken in the PC's car and read her rights then gave a statement. The PC then said this would corresponded with the cyclist and witnesses statements, so there would likely be no further action unless the cyclist suddenly changes his story. She was also breathalised but registered no reading.

The cyclist also told the PC who took the statement that he'd been out drinking the night before to celebrate his 18th birthday and lost his wallet and keys, and I could smell alcohol on his breath when checking he was okay after the accident. He was not wearing a helmet.

The cyclist was taken away in a neck brace and on a stretcher by the ambulance, and the PC told my girlfriend he'd call either yesterday or today to keep us informed (which so far hasn't happened).

When we crashed she slammed on and the impact through me forward then back and I suffered a whiplash on the right side of my neck. I work in an office job and am on a probabationary period at work so I can't afford another day off work, and I'm due back in tomorrow.

Would it be worth making a claim? I need to work so can't afford any time off, but my neck is very painful and was very stiff this morning when I woke up.

The only thing that concerns me is I've been told cyclists don't need insurance, therefore I'd have to claim off my girlfriend's insurance - something she is totally unwilling to do, as she has 8 years no claims and would have to pay £500.00 excess - and she reckons it would also double her premiums.

Any advice would be very welcome."

 

[jcdenton08]

Hang on a minute, despite the circumstances, the fact is your Girlfriend has driven into the back of the cyclist. I could be wrong but this will always be seen has the fault of the driver behind.

No. The cyclist accepted responsibility and three witnesses stated that the cyclist was at fault. By your logic, I could step out in front of any car and that person would be responsible. You sir, are an idiot.

 

[jcdenton08]

She is going to have to claim on her insurance to get the repairs to the car anyway so she will have to cough up the £500 excess and claim it back off the cyclist. (Probably awarded £1 a week by the courts)

If you had been wearing a seat belt it would have prevented you from being "thrown" forward.
Sound like your looking to claim for the sake of it, as it appears to be the done thing today, where there’s a claim that a blame.
Think you have been very lucky for the cyclist to admit it,

Why have you made a point about the cyclist not wearing a helmet ? is it relevant

f*** me, if you know nothing whatsoever about anything why reply?

1) She doesn't need to claim through the insurance. To make ANY kind of claim on the insurance a) means a £500.00 excess and b) will result in losing no claims bonus and c) will drastically cause premiums to rise.
All it's costing is £75.00 for a new windscreen to do independantly.

Explain therefore how it "needs" to go through the insurance?

2) I WAS wearing a seatbelt. Have you ever been in a car crash? Or hit a man with such force as to potentially kill him? I assure you wearing a selt belt and head against the head rest it is quite possible to get whiplash. Or am I making it up?

3) "here there’s a claim that a blame." What the f*** does that mean? Why reply, you utter, utter prick.

4) I refer you, AGAIN, to my original post. "There were three witnesses who all gave statements to the police saying they'd seen what happened, additionally the cyclist made a statement to the police saying it was his fault and he had not indicated."

 

[Wardy]

f*** me, if you know nothing whatsoever about anything why reply?

1) She doesn't need to claim through the insurance. To make ANY kind of claim on the insurance a) means a £500.00 excess and b) will result in losing no claims bonus and c) will drastically cause premiums to rise.
All it's costing is £75.00 for a new windscreen to do independantly.

Explain therefore how it "needs" to go through the insurance?

2) I WAS wearing a seatbelt. Have you ever been in a car crash? Or hit a man with such force as to potentially kill him? I assure you wearing a selt belt and head against the head rest it is quite possible to get whiplash. Or am I making it up?

3) "here there’s a claim that a blame." What the f*** does that mean? Why reply, you utter, utter prick.

4) I refer you, AGAIN, to my original post. "There were three witnesses who all gave statements to the police saying they'd seen what happened, additionally the cyclist made a statement to the police saying it was his fault and he had not indicated."

And breath

 

[Monsieur Le Plonk]

Did you ever hear if the cyclist is ok?
If you dont mind me asking - how is your neck? How many days off work you anticipating needing to take off?

 

[Father Jack]

ok, i worked in car insurance, i think you are going struggle to make a claim, your girlfriends insurance is pointless as it was a non fault accident so they simply wont pay out UNLESS she has protected no claims discount, if this is the case then claim on hers as it wont cost her anything come renewal.

As for persuing the cyclist unless they have some form of personal insurance you will struggle but try any old solicitor and they may be able to help. to be honest it sounds like the accident could have been a lot worse and had it been at more of a speed it could have been potentially fatal not just to the cyclist but to passengers. I would get some painkillers for that neck.

 

[Garage_Doors]

Sorry, I must be thick , I have re read it in the Agatha Christie style large print (was that nessasary ) but I can't see where you have stated the relevance of the cyclist not wearing a helmet?
Please be so good as to point it out
I don’t think you want actual constructive advice but just for us to say there there, you deserve to claim £1000’s in compensation.

It was a minor accident nothing more nothing less, nothing to claim for.
If you must claim then you only option is :

a) Off your girlfriends insurance where I’m sure you would get some much wanted compo.
b) Sue the cyclist, being 18year old student, very difficult as probably no assets.

 

[jcdenton08]

Did you ever hear if the cyclist is ok?
If you dont mind me asking - how is your neck? How many days off work you anticipating needing to take off?

No, PC Mason didn't bother calling back. There's a surprise. Called Pinderfields hospital twice, all they're saying is that he is there as a patient but I'd need to go through the police liaison to have any further information.

I'll be off at least 72 hours that's what the hospital GP said in A&E as a guideline. Hopefully my work will see common sense and give me a chance to work back the hours or whatever.

 

[jcdenton08]

Sorry, I must be thick , I have re read it in the Agatha Christie style large print (was that nessasary ) but I can't see where you have stated the relevance of the cyclist not wearing a helmet?
Please be so good as to point it out
I don’t think you want actual constructive advice but just for us to say there there, you deserve to claim £1000’s in compensation.

It was a minor accident nothing more nothing less, nothing to claim for.
If you must claim then you only option is :

a) Off your girlfriends insurance where I’m sure you would get some much wanted compo.
b) Sue the cyclist, being 18year old student, very difficult as probably no assets.

The relevance is that he might not have been laid on the floor unconscious after the accident.