Potholes and compensation advice

ghudders13

Hi everyone

My first post on here and I'm looking to get some advice on behalf of my dad who came off his bike on his way into work this morning. He works near Old Street tube station in the N1 area of North London.

From what I gather he was cycling along his normal route but this morning failed to spot a large pothole as it was raining heavily and had filled with water. He was travelling at considerable speed when his front wheel became stuck in the pothole and this threw him off his bike, although he managed to fall to his left onto the pavement/road rather than right and directly into the middle of the road. Consequently he has sprained his wrist and may have injured his arm more seriously, although he is yet to consult a doctor or have an X-ray.

I have done some brief research on compensation and it seems like quite an arduous process. I have already advised him to take some photos of the specific pothole, as well as taking a measurement of the depth and width. From what he has said the pothole appears quite deep (at least deep enough for his wheel to become completely stuck and thus throw him off his bike with significant force).

So I was wondering whether anybody on here has had any personal experience of similar incidents, or could point me in the right direction regarding our next move in terms of what to do/who to contact etc. Any advice is greatly appreciated and thanks in advance for taking the time to read this!

Initialised

Check with ffillthathole.org, if the hole or stretch of road has previously been flagged up there's more chance of getting compensation as the council will already be aware of the problem and failed to rectify it before it caused an accident.

Get in touch with a (proper) Law firm that also deals with No-Win-No-Fee Personal Injury claims.
Get a quote for a repair and replacement parts for the bike, I'd expect it'll need it's front wheel trued at the very least.
Keep any receipts for bike parts and repairs, public transport, taxis or fuel costs, mileage and road tolls etc... to support the case.
Keep a log of any time off work due to the injury and visits to the bike shop for parts/repairs.
He must visit a doctor as soon as possible, note how much time this takes.
Time off work can be part of the claim based on daily or hourly rates as loss of earnings.

I hope his hand/arm isn't too bad and he's back on the bike as soon as possible.

Prowlus

Man, Potholes are getting so bad in Nw london. Some places are almost like mountain bike trails in terms of terrain. I had to use my full suspension Mtb to cover certain parts of Hendon instead of a my Fuji to prevent my wheels from being bent out of shape

ghudders13

Thanks for your replies and your advice, all very useful. I've passed all the information onto my dad so fingers crossed we get somewhere. Thanks again

mjf1017

If he hasn't done so already, tell him to get an x-ray on that wrist. The hand and wrist are rammed with bones and can be easily fractured. After hurting my wrist after a bike crash, I left it for 6 weeks before I had it looked at by a Doctor. My GP had a duck fit when he found out how long I'd left it and sent my to hospital immediately for an X-ray and results. Luckily nothing was found, but the doc was concerned about a fracture which effectively kills the bone and causes all sorts of long term problems. So send the old man up to the A&E now just to make sure.

damocles10

It would seem some councils are cutting corners with road repairs...I have seen many potholes pop up this week with the rain..utterly shocking. Personally, I will never cycle through a puddle as I will indicate around it, most drivers are fine with that - if you can't see the road through a puddle don't ride over it.

Having said that, I hope your dad recovers swiftly.....he should see a doctor ASAP as this is more important than a claim.