After Accident Questions

jamesco

Hi all, I got knocked off my bike this morning by a bus* and it brought to mind a couple of questions:

1 - if you fall and you're wearing SPDs, do they tend to make the fall worse by keeping the bike tangled up with your legs as you skid down the road?

2 - if you're involved in an accident and no real damage is done (to you) but the driver has clearly stuffed up, should you call the police? Or just get over it and move on?

Cheers, James

*happened here heading east. The road narrows and veers left; the bus passed me and left no room between its side and the curb and that was it - fortunately no real damage done, and the adrenaline rush made the rest of the ride into work very quick!

lost_in_thought

Hey, sorry to hear about that, that is a really cr@ppy section of road, especially with the bus lane layout after the railway and the ridiculous potholes you have to avoid.

Not sure on the SPDs, the merits of having the bike attached to you or not are debatable... I guess they keep your legs from getting caught in the frame as you fall, but after Blondie's Focus attacked him I'm not sure!

How are you and the bike? You may be more damaged than you think once the adrenalin has worn off.

I don't know the legality of it, but hope you're OK.

redvee

jamesco wrote:

1 - if you fall and you're wearing SPDs, do they tend to make the fall worse by keeping the bike tangled up with your legs as you skid down the road?

SPDs release themselves in times of accidents, except slow speed clipless moments when you have a crowd :oops:

nation

I tend to find I clip in an out without thinking about it, so any time I've had a big spill (mostly offroad, for those counting) I've managed to unclip while being thrown off the bike.

The only exception is crashes where something's caused the bike to stop dead. The incident I have in mind is my front wheel disappearing down a gap in a log bridge, which didn't so much throw me over the bars as grab the front wheel and cause the bike to carry on forwards, pivoting around the front axle.

As regards accidents, if there's anyone else involved make sure you get a registration at the very least., even if you're not calling the police. Ideally get insurance details and witness details, you might find some damage later.

jamesco

That's reassuring news that the SPDs will let go. I'll write to TfL about the accident but don't expect much as it'll be the driver's report vs. mine and she said she didn't see me (no kidding..)

I'm fine, thanks, LiT, have practised falling off motorbikes a lot so there's nothing damaged that wasn't damaged before. The boring bike has some more scrapes & scratches so it looks rather better than before

Christophe3967

Bad luck - good to hear you're alright. As others have said, you'll come out of your SPDs easily in the event of a crash without having to think about it. As for the bus driver, I would do everything to ensure that at least he receives remedial training - they're supposed to be aware of bikes. Ideally you should get his licence number (which he is obliged to provide) as well as the registration number of the bus, and report the incident to TFL, who are supposed to investigate.

Not reporting these incidents may seem the easy option, but hopefully if more cyclists complain bus drivers might alter their behaviour.

<Looks out of window at pig narrowly missing top of Tower Bridge>

Soul Boy

As I found out when a taxi, a bit too eager to get off the line, ran into the back of me, pinning my bike in a upright position by the back wheel (I was able to step off the bike and it was just stood there, back wheel half eaten), the Police won't response unless somebodies injured.

Would be tempted to phone the bus co. though...

Hope you and the bike are ok.

always_tyred

jamesco wrote:

That's reassuring news that the SPDs will let go. I'll write to TfL about the accident but don't expect much as it'll be the driver's report vs. mine and she said she didn't see me (no kidding..)

You never know. You were on a high street - CCTV perhaps? Some busses are also equipped with CCTV, which may have recorded the driver telling you she didn't see you (which is something of an admission), given that she overtook you. There's also the diminishingly small possibility that the driver might provide a report which is consistent with yours.

downfader

Several more important questions need addressing..

...did the driver stop and give details... did you get witness details... has the bike been looked over at a decent bike shop and similarly your body by a doctor?

I would say it sounds like he was driving without due care and attention and you could indeed ask the police what they think.

downfader

Soul Boy wrote:

...the Police won't response unless somebodies injured.

Not always the case. Given that its a blimmin big vehicle it could have done a LOT of damage and they might be swayed to have a serious word. It depends on the circumstances, and in this case a collision actually occured

Bikerbaboon

Just to clear a few things on hte spd front.
in a crash spds dont just let go of your feet its just any twisting force from the crash can pop your feet free and the side force needed to pop the cleat out is low. In slow impacts most people can twist out there feet well b4 hitting the floor . It is possible to have a crash and end up stuck under hte bike still strapped in, This is unlikely but i just dont want people thinking that spd have a get out of jail free mechanic built in.

steve-m

lost_in_thought wrote:

How are you and the bike? You may be more damaged than you think once the adrenalin has worn off.

^^^^
This.

Hit a car crossing my path on Friday on the way home, she turned right crossing my path - having waited for a car, I slowed down in time so as not to go a*** over t** but my front wheel hit her side. Checked my wheel and it seemed okay; shouted a lot but never got her address or called the police - next day I noticed the forks had been bent slightly.

So always get the address/ details, inspect the bike the next day and maybe get it checked by the LBS.