Injury claim advice needed please

WarrenT

I got hit by a driver whilst out cycling on Sunday morning. The police have said the driver is at fault and is getting done for driving without due care and attention. Had to have a 2 hour op yesterday and lost 4 teeth as well as multiple lacerations to my face and mouth. Gonna be off work for a while.

Anyway, where do I start when making a claim or who with? I have no idea about this sort of thing. My bike is f**ked as well but I'm insured but I shouldn't have to go through my insurance surely?

Any help or advice would be appreciated.

slowbike

If you belong to British Cycling then a quick call to them will start the ball rolling ...

If not then if your insurance (even house insurance) includes legal cover then a quick call to them for assistance might be a good idea. They will claim costs from the other parties insurers.

Take a look at this thread from Commuting General ...

A lot of ppl deal with all this themselves - but I think this is one case where a solicitor could take all the ball ache out of it for you - leaving you to concentrate on recuperation and (more importantly!) replacing the bike!

bails87

Get well soon.

As said above, let a solicitor deal with it, especially with a relatively serious case like this.

This is why I strongly recommend that cyclists join BC, CTC or similar with legal support.

BC use Leigh Day and Co, I'm sure they'd represent you if you got in touch with them.

WarrenT

Thanks guys.

Do I need to contact my insurance people about my bike? I think my bike is write off. The down tube and the top tube both have cracks and dents in them.

Team4Luke

WarrenT wrote:

Thanks guys.

Do I need to contact my insurance people about my bike? I think my bike is write off. The down tube and the top tube both have cracks and dents in them.

No. You are claiming everything off the drivers insurance, bike which will be a new one, clothing, injury compensation and lost wages and any travel expenses etc.

thegreatdivide

Contact a solicitor ASAP.

But be warned the whole thing could take a while to sort out. I got knocked down in May of last year (2011) had my right arm shattered very badly and had to have two major operations. The legal side is still ongoing and that's with the driver and their insurance company taking full liability. If I'm lucky I could see a settlement at the end of this year.

Bustacapp

WarrenT wrote:

I got hit by a driver whilst out cycling on Sunday morning. The police have said the driver is at fault and is getting done for driving without due care and attention. Had to have a 2 hour op yesterday and lost 4 teeth as well as multiple lacerations to my face and mouth. Gonna be off work for a while.

Anyway, where do I start when making a claim or who with? I have no idea about this sort of thing. My bike is f**ked as well but I'm insured but I shouldn't have to go through my insurance surely?

Any help or advice would be appreciated.

Sounds nasty. Care to explain what happened?

All you need to do is see any solicitor - even one of those ambulance chaser 'no win no fee' types. And they will take care of the rest!

cougie

Nasty.

Plenty of cycling friendly lawyers in the back of cycling weekly. Alyson France is a good one in my experience.

Take photos of everything - all the injuries - all the damage. Hope you heal well.

diy

Plenty of specialist no win no fee lawyers will take your case on - you need a personal injury specialist. I'm surprised you haven't had calls already. Just do a bit of research about the firms you go with and don't go with a general high street solicitor who is used to doing wills.

Anonymous

Take plenty of photos and keep a detailled diary of any pains and niggles which arise.
Good luck with your recovery!

BridlingtonBiker

Hope you're on the long road to recovery. As already stated don't think this is going to be over by XMas. I got knocked off August 2011. Other side have admitted liability. I have used a motorcycle no win solicitors (White Dalton) as I wasn't a British Cycling member at the time. They have been awesome.

Be prepared for more paperwork than you could ever imagine. It's truly unbelievable. I'll get something from the solicitors now and just be like when will this end.

The first thing the solicitor you chose will do is seek an interim payment to cover the cost of your bike. Unfortunately this interim payment can be a maximum of £1000 which sometimes doesn't go very far in our world.

Good luck