Mandatory Insurance

spasypaddy

I think that cyclist should have mandatory insurace, if car drivers have to have it then i dont see why we as cyclists shouldn't.

It doesn't need to cover theft as this is something extra that you could add on if you so desired, but if you have an accident with a pedestrian or a car you may end up forking out alot of money.

I am a cyclist and i dont even have a driving license. I do not have insurance at the moment (as i haven't got the funds as i didnt get paid this month) but from payday next month i will not be cycling without insurance.

JustRidecp

Horses dont pay insurance.

spen666

perhaps we should make pedestrians have insurance as well


Whats that Mrsa Miggins - no insurance- then you can't leave your house- sorry.

Whats that? You needto get down to the dole to sign on and get your giro- sorry no pedestrian insurance- you'll have to stay inside.

What's that? You'll starve- sorry thats the way the cookie crumbles- or not in your case

mba007

Anything that adds cost and beaurocracy to cycling is extremely unwelcome. The last thing we want is the nanny state to take more control over our lives. If collisions with pedestrians or cars are not your fault then you have nothing to fear.

Mandatory insurance for bikes is a silly idea.

Anyway, doesn't the CTC offer £5 million third-party as part of the subscription?

spasypaddy

i had an accident and i wish i had had insurance, as a result ive had to pay out £400 to get my bike fixed whilst i wait for the driver to admit liability and for me to get my money back. Had i had insurance they would of covered it and then retrieved the money themselves. There are numerous occasions when im cycling between offices that people step out in front of me, its just a matter of time before i collide with one and they sue me!

ddraver

well make CTC membership compulsary then... :P

It never seems to be that expensive (i ve never had it for UK either) but i don't think its a wholey bad idea although it would be another obstacle in the way of encouraging cycling which is not what we want

Regulator

The reason that insurance for drivers of motor vehicles is mandatory is that, when the NHS was founded the treatment of those injured in motor vehicle accidents was not 'free at the point of use' - hospitals were (and still are) entitled to charge motor vehicle incident victims for their treatment.

The government decided that, as a minimum, third party insurance would be required to ensure those responsible for an incident were able to pay for the treatment costs of themselves and those they injured.

Cyclists, horseriders and pedestrians rarely cause injuries to other road users that require hospital treatment. Therefore, it was decided that they would not be liable for treatment costs and did not require insurance.

This stance was reviewed a few years ago. The government concluded that there is no substantive evidence to show that the actions of cyclists, horseriders or pedestrians contribute significantly to road traffic accidents or that they were responsible for a substantive increase in treatment costs to the NHS (unlike the overwhelming evidence in relation to motor vehicle drivers). It was agreed that there was no basis to require insurance for cyclists, horseriders and pedestrians.

JustRidecp

spasypaddy wrote:

There are numerous occasions when im cycling between offices that people step out in front of me, its just a matter of time before i collide with one and they sue me!

Surely if some tool ped steps out onto a road without looking and you hit into them its their fault? Could they still sue you? I'm not having a go, just interested if this is the case.

graeme_s-2

JustRidecp wrote:

spasypaddy wrote:

There are numerous occasions when im cycling between offices that people step out in front of me, its just a matter of time before i collide with one and they sue me!

Surely if some tool ped steps out onto a road without looking and you hit into them its their fault? Could they still sue you? I'm not having a go, just interested if this is the case.

As far as I'm aware, anybody can sue anyone for anything. It doesn't mean they'll be successful.

Regulator

spasypaddy wrote:

i had an accident and i wish i had had insurance, as a result ive had to pay out £400 to get my bike fixed whilst i wait for the driver to admit liability and for me to get my money back. Had i had insurance they would of covered it and then retrieved the money themselves. There are numerous occasions when im cycling between offices that people step out in front of me, its just a matter of time before i collide with one and they sue me!

If they step out in front of you without exercising due care and attention to ensure that it was safe to do so, then they would be liable - not you. You could sue them for any damage or injury you suffered.

on the road

spasypaddy wrote:

There are numerous occasions when im cycling between offices that people step out in front of me, its just a matter of time before i collide with one and they sue me!

Is it because you were riding on the pavement?

spasypaddy

Is it because you were riding on the pavement?

yes i was riding at 30mph on the pavement right through a shopping centre...
/sarcasm

ddraver

humkming that song from the blues brothers?!

on the road

Well if you're riding on the road at 30mph, then you should ride in the middle of your lane, you won't get people stepping out in front of you. I don't have that problem.

spasypaddy

Well if you're riding on the road at 30mph, then you should ride in the middle of your lane, you won't get people stepping out in front of you. I don't have that problem.

worringly enough i was in the middle of my lane, it was the bus lane and i had to stop pretty damn quickly!

Noodley

spasypaddy wrote:

i had an accident and i wish i had had insurance, as a result ive had to pay out £400 to get my bike fixed whilst i wait for the driver to admit liability and for me to get my money back. Had i had insurance they would of covered it and then retrieved the money themselves. There are numerous occasions when im cycling between offices that people step out in front of me, its just a matter of time before i collide with one and they sue me!

No, I was going to post a reply but can't be arsed anymore...

penugent

If you have house contents insurance, or live with your parents and they have house contents insurance, you are likely to have insurance on both your bike and the third party liabilities arising from the use thereof as part of the overall insurance package. There will be a few limits and restrictions, but the cover is usually pretty good. The same policies will also usually cover damage/injury negligently caused by your actions as a pedestrian, horserider etc!! Check your policy to see what applies in your case - as policies differ.

knedlicky

Similar to 'penugent' above - if you have a private third-party insurance, it might well cover bicycle accidents both for yourself and your family.

Such an insurance might only cost around ₤30 p.a. (i.e. a policy where you pay the initial ₤100 - if you don't want to pay anything, obviously the insurance premium is then higher).
It will cover you not only when you accidentally sit or stand on someone else's designer glasses, when you knock down a shelf of Delft porcelain in the department store, or when a tile slips off your roof on to someone's head, but also ...

... when you as a cyclist cause an accident (you make a mistake causing a driver to swerve and he hits a parked car),
... when your parked bike falls against some pricey Mercedes and scratches the car's metallic paintwork,
... when you take your bike on public transport and a pedal catches and rips the best overcoat of another passenger,
... and so on, including more complicated events and situations.

Old Tuggo

If you have household insurance I think you will find that it covers you for public liability claims.