Questions after an off - not the usual ones

paulintheforest

Yesterday I came a cropper on a country lane by going too fast in torrential rain and not making it round a corner. The bike started to slide out as I turned leaving me to choose a gap in the hedge and brake hard. All went fine for a second or two until the front wheel hit the grass and flipped me off onto the ground. I was very lucky in that a bunch of cyclists on a Cancer Research ride were just behind me and called an ambulance. There was a bit of worry about my back but after X-rays etc it's just pulled muscles and a broken collar bone, it could have been much worse now I'm just sat here feeling sorry for myself and having to learn to do lots of things left handed.

Anyway to the questions.
I understand that an ambulance coming to an RTA is charged so that the insurance company pays for it. Since it was just me on a bike should I expect a bill that my household liability insurance will hopefully cover?

Anyone done a collar bone? how long until you could drive and how long until you got back on the bike?

Getting back on the bike, my bike is a Giant SCR2 with the standard tyres, can I get grippier tyres for the wet or should I think about a cross bike for the winter with mud guards etc? My commute is 22 miles each way and my plan was to continue to do it once a week through the winter. I might need to revise those plans now.

Obviously with n+1 a new bike is the answer so can anyone suggest a nice cross bike between £500 and £1000 all in that I could get on C2W once I am healed? The £1k upper limit would need to include pedals, mud guards rack etc.

roger_merriman

soft compound rubber helps as does wider tyre.

sadly road tyres specs tend to waffle on about this and that and avoid telling you how soft or not the rubber is.

so yes some wider tyres may help this said if they are too treaded then their footprint will be worse as comparatively they are still thin tyres.

bails87

RE the ambulance bill, I don't think there'll be one.

I was hit by a car, completely the driver's fault. I went to A&E and my GPs, I got a letter from a gov't dept (DWP? Can't remember) asking me what medical attention I'd had from the NHS as a result of the collision, so that they could charge it to the driver's insurance. The form didn't mention an ambulance response though, it only asked if I'd attended hospital or a doctor's.

But I think that's because someone else had injured me, causing me to need medical attention as a result of their negligence. I'm sure it's different to being billed after injuring yourself due to making a mistake in difficult conditions. It's certainly not something I've ever heard of.

beverick

There is the facility for the NHS to recharge insurance companies for 'accidental' injuries but it's never applied.

It's subject to a £250 limit anyway.

There was a proposal to scrap the cap and to allow/encourage the NHS to claim the costs against the insurance companies but the insurance industry dug in and the idea was scrapped.

Bob

Blacktemplar

bails87 wrote:

RE the ambulance bill, I don't think there'll be one.

Nope - that's why you pay for the NHS through NI contributions.

I did a similar thing last year (tore out my AC joint) and was trundled off to hospital with full blues 'n' twos FOC

jonnyboy77

paulintheforest wrote:

Anyone done a collar bone? how long until you could drive and how long until you got back on the bike?

I came off my bike in the first week of Dec last year, broke my collarbone in 4 places. I was riding again in the April of this year ... I may have been conservative with my return, but I followed the advice of doctors and physios before getting back on two wheels again.

- Jon

andrewjoseph

Broke my arm in sept last year, no ambulance charge.

separated AC joint a few years ago, no riding for 3 months.

i used the turbo several times a week though.

optimisticbiker

Did left collarbone a few years back... was off bike for around 12 weeks, driving after 10 IIRC.

Mate of mine races motorcycles - has broken both collarbones, usually has surgery and plated them and been back racing in 3 weeks :roll:

PBo

tweet brad wiggins and ask him for advice!

Underscore

I broke my collar bone (badly displaced but only a single break in the middle third) 2 weeks before my second son was due. The first time I drove was on the day he arrived 2.5 weeks later. I delayed my paternity leave for a bit and I started back on the bike after that, which was between 6 and 7 weeks after the break. From what I remember, I don't think that I would have wanted to start on the bike much before 6 weeks - going over road imperfections was pretty uncomfortable, even starting back as late as I did.

Of course, all breaks will differ - yours may be more or less severe or you may get yours plated - so treat this as anecdote, not advice!

HTH,

_

gbsahne001

I was scraped off the road back in April and got the fast route to hospital; no bill so far and I'm not really expecting one now.

Broke my collar bone in 95 and it healed quite quickly, I think I was back on a bike within 6 weeks.

RufusA

AFAIK the NHS recovery only applies when there is a personal injury claim made against an insurance policy. So unless you're claiming you needed worry!

Bradley Wiggins broke his collar bone in /mid july and is competing in Vuelta a Espana in early September.

Generally assuming no complications factor 6-8 weeks before it stops hurting, but you may be allowed back on the bike before then if you take it easy.

IMHO in the wrong conditions you can lose grip with any tyre, just learn to read the road conditions and avoid risk factors. In the wet or on loose gravel, white lines etc. I corner slowly and gently as if on ice!

Mend soon.

Rufus.