Just had an accident

essex-commuter

Just been knocked off (90 minutes ago) commuting home, first time in over 10 years of cycling to work.

Small residential street, car coming the other way turned right into me, I tried to steer away but she was accelerating and took me out. Saddle wrecked, front wheel bent, no idea about the frame. Helmet cracked. She said she didn't see me. She said when she reversed back she thought she had hit an orange bin box (that you put glass waste in), I was wearing a bright orange top.

I haven't broken anything, can't believe it as i'm over 50 and remember flying through the air before I hit the ground. Both knees are heavily grazed, chunk out of my left arm and lots of blood obviously, large lump come up on the inside of my knee and my shoulders and neck ache.

She was fairly decent, but was more worried about the large dent I put in her front wing as it was a "new car and my Husband will kill me". She said she would take me home and we did that via my LBS to drop the bike off. They know me well, could see I wasn't my normal self. They heard her keep talking about the dent in her car AND the fact that she didn't see me. She also said where are your pedals, she obviously hasn't seen SPD's before.

When she wasn't in the shop the fellas told me to phone the Police and report it as I had injuries, I also noticed as we drove away one came out of the shop and photographed the car, that was decent of them.

I have her phone number and name, I have pictures of her car including the dent I put in it. She has already texted me with "Mark, are you OK?" to which my wife replied as I was laying down at the time.

Still a bit shaken but looking for advice on what to do. She said a couple of times that she didn't want to get her insurance company involved...as it was a new car and her Husband wouldn't be happy.

Guess first I need to report to Police somehow. Then find out about the bike. Any experiences to share guys?

Sorry for the long post and maybe my sentences are a bit disjointed, just wanted to get it all down for a bit of advice.

I have Silver BC membership.

Thank you.

essex-commuter

Just received another text saying hope you are OK and asking if she can take me to hospital even though at the time I said I wanted to go home, says she feels bad. She has also said she is happy to pay for the repair to my bike.

N0bodyOfTheGoat

GWS and I hope you get the bike and commute gear back to the condition it was in before the ride, cannot advise on insurance stuff, my RTA was all me and my rim bakes.

cougie

You need a check up. You might have injuries that show up over time. Claim for all your damage. Is it an expensive bike ? She might change her mind if it's more than a few hundred. Motorists assume bikes are cheap and that's why we do it.

essex-commuter

cougie wrote:

You need a check up. You might have injuries that show up over time. Claim for all your damage. Is it an expensive bike ? She might change her mind if it's more than a few hundred. Motorists assume bikes are cheap and that's why we do it.

The bike shop phoned me earlier to check I was OK, which was nice. They haven't checked the frame yet but confirmed the saddle was broken and the front wheel f*cked ( I was too shaken at the time to check it over, just knew it wasn't right). Bike is carbon, £1500, so not overly expensive to us, but probably a shock to her if she knew. Helmet, £100 (50% off replacement for accident damage).

I'll see how I feel in the morning, if I'm stiff and aching in my neck and shoulders still, guess it's A&E?, deep joy.

roger_merriman

can't say from personal experience since well a) there was no one to blame but my self probably. and b) I have no memory of it and was taken by ambulance etc.

yes clearly get the bike checked out thats a fair hit, and your not yourself at moment.

Do get checked out by GP, or drop in centre easy to brush things off in the heat of the moment.

hopefully your back soon and bike is repaired.

cougie

If report it to the police then. You need evidence in case she changes her story. Photograph everything. All damage to you and your kit. Ask the shop guys for the car photo too. I'm sure she's a lovely person who can't drive very well and is honourable but play safe.

pblakeney

The guy who hit me was very nice and covered all expenses but here are my observations.
Photograph all evidence.
Get written quotes. She will be surprised at the cost.
Aches and pains, go to A&E. Go early beat the rush.
Anyone claiming SMIDSY should automatically be done for driving without due care and attention.

DrLex

Sorry to read of your incident, chap.
I think that the first post of this thread -
https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/accid ... ce.151618/
- has a lot of useful information in your situation.

GWS, don’t stint on getting a full check-up & think of the new bike.

alihisgreat

100% get insurance involved. Whichever law firm i dealt with via British Cycling when i got hit by a car were great.

Don't feel sorry for her, you're the victim so take appropriate steps to protect yourself from any future problems.

I picked up a "minor" but very frustrating knee injury when i was hit, for which i had 6 sessions of physio over ~5 months, a medical examination, and an MRI scan. All paid for by the insurer, plus they also covered the full quote for the damage to the bike, and gave me a cash settlement in case of any future expenses as a result of the injury.

No need to report it to the police, ask for her insurance details and contact British Cycling who will put you in touch with their legal partner.

itboffin

Sorry to hear that matey but do go and see a medical professional, they'll tell you if you need xrays etc also contact BC, but beware they hand these off to third parties who seem to be keen on pursuing a claim.

redvee

Keep all receipts for expenses you wouldn't normally face and can be traced back to the accident such as bike inspection, using PT whilst bike off the road or cause of injuries. If she contacts you again ask her what sort of bill she's expecting to get by avoiding the insurance company, she'll no doubt say a few hundred but by time injuries and other costs are taken into consideration she'll be looking at thousands.
If BC got to a third party solicitor go with a more specialised firm like Alyson France aka BikeLine. they'll be able to offer better advice than a bunch of internet experts.

essex-commuter

Thanks for the advice. Woken up with lots of aches this morning.

She's sent a few texts asking how I am, saying she was worried about me. She sent a text this morning saying can she buy me some muscle rub or chocolates, had to laugh at that.

smokey_bacon

Ouch, sorry to hear that dude. Hope you heal up quick.

wolfsbane2k

Owch.

1st things first, remind her it's her legal duty to report the incident to the police within 24 hours.

2nd, get to a drop in centre.

3rdly, give BC a ring, Leigh day are good. Yes, they will go all out, but you have you look after yourself first, and the NHS physio etc take a long time to access, going private cuts a lot of waiting time down, speeding up recovery time.

I doubt the driver has £400 spare to hand for wheels, saddles, inspection fees etc, let alone frame replacements and medical fees.

timothyw

I'm in two minds what I would suggest you do in this case - certainly it needs to be reported to the police at an absolute minimum, the whole not getting insurance involved thing is where it gets complicated.

I'm having a little difficulty understanding how she didn't see you when you were driving directly towards each other? Sounds like she might have been playing with phone, the radio, make up, whatever, basically anything but looking where she was going, which would say to me get onto insurance and take her for all you can.

On the other hand, insurance claims can be a long drawn out process, and if you feel that your injuries will heal within a reasonable period (IE a few weeks) then you might be better off just getting a cheque for a new bike plus incidentals and putting it all behind you.

Of course, the likelihood is that she will baulk at paying what you quote her, and then you'll have to get insurance involved anyway....

I did the latter with a lady that pulled across me and took me out, I had to let her pay in two instalments (and that was only £400 total). Fortunately for her I was on a cheap bike (and it was a relatively innocent mistake, pulling across a queue of traffic after some unknown dickhead had waved her across with me filtering).

essex-commuter

Wolfsbane2k wrote:

Owch.

1st things first, remind her it's her legal duty to report the incident to the police within 24 hours.

2nd, get to a drop in centre.

3rdly, give BC a ring, Leigh day are good. Yes, they will go all out, but you have you look after yourself first, and the NHS physio etc take a long time to access, going private cuts a lot of waiting time down, speeding up recovery time.

I doubt the driver has £400 spare to hand for wheels, saddles, inspection fees etc, let alone frame replacements and medical fees.

Good advice thank you. Just noticed I've got a bloody scratch across the face of my Garmin Fenix now. Still, I think I'm OK, got my check up at 9.10.

cougie

Aah bugger. Did you have a screen protector on the fenix ?

timothyw

Just to add, if you have dented her car I think it highly likely that your frameset is also a write off (for insurance purposes at least).

I suppose it's possible that the wheel took the brunt of the damage, but when I got taken out the bend in my chunky steel downtube was impressive, and I hardly left a mark on the side door of the car.

I would not want to risk it if I were you, especially where driver stupidity is clearly the issue.

slowbike

Definately report it to the Police - and suggest to her she does the same - not that you're after a prosecution, but some insurances get a bit funny if they don't have a police number to report against.

As for getting insurance involved - that depends - partially on the extent of your injuries and partially on her available cash! If you're hurt and need time off work and potentially doctor/gp treatment then I'd suggest you'd probably be claiming for your injuries - then it's time for the insurance co -that's what they're there for. If it's just the bike & bits then possibly indicate an approximate cost to her and see what they come back with.

When I got doored (many moons ago) I suffered a buckled front wheel and minor grazing - the guy apologized straight away - took me to the LBS and booked in the wheel then took me to college - picked me up later and back to the shop where he paid for the damages there and then - he probably "got off lightly" - but I bore no ill feeling towards him - it wasn't anything done on purpose and damage was minor.

dinyull

The reason people encourage insurance claims on injuries is because there is no telling how long a little niggling injury can last. Even after a Dr's examination.

If I were you I'd be going down the route of insurance, just to cover your backside. Your talking £400 already and that's before your frame potentially gets written off. If it isn't, will you be happy still riding it?

Your the victim, so don't worry about her.

dhope

Had someone turn into me a few years back. Went over the bonnet and ended up with some impressive bruises but the bike looked fine at the time. I had lbs check it over - they agreed it looked fine but said they couldn't be totally sure without putting the frame through an MRI.
That was enough for the insurance company to give me £900 for the bike (which had been £1000 new).

Couple of weeks later I noticed a crack in the lacquer around the bottom bracket. Turns out the frame was f*cked after all.

If the impact was enough to break a wheel, saddle, helmet, and dent a car, then I'd consider writing it off. Up to her whether that's insurance or out of her pocket.

And get a reference number from the police. Makes everything feel a bit more serious than just a little bump on a side road.

essex-commuter

cougie wrote:

Aah bugger. Did you have a screen protector on the fenix ?

No I didn't. I bought one but was never happy with the clarity so removed it :?

graeme_s-2

Really sorry to hear about this, get well soon!

Might be a bit late now, but make sure when you see your doctor you're absolutely clear about how you were injured, and that they record it as you were hit by a car.

Years back I was knocked off in a hit and run and had to claim against the Motor Insurer's Bureau for a shoulder injury. No witnesses, no culprit, just my police report and notes from my A&E attendance. Unbeknownst to me A&E has noted that I had "fallen off" my bike. The Motor Insurer's Bureau initially refused to pay out based on this, suggesting no other vehicle was involved at all. Luckily I had a CTC appointed lawyer on my side. They referred the case to a QC (which is the appeals process) and they sided with me, so nearly 3 years after the incident I finally got a pay out (which paid for the wardrobes in our bedroom).

surrey_commuter

as somebody of a similar age I strongly agree with everybody who is advising you to get in the system. I had a minor bone break in the shoulder that morphed into a frozen shoulder. His insurers paid all the medical bills and five figures for me.

essex-commuter

Back from Doctor's, he was a cyclist so that helped. Stretched, possibly slightly torn ligaments in neck and trapezius muscles. Rest and Ibuprofen, probably feel worse tomorrow, only need to go further if vomiting or vision issues. So basically OK.

I'll give the driver an update and wait to hear from the bike shop. Then I'll see how she wants to take it from there.

I've registered the accident with the Police, the VW Touareg was so new it was still registered at the dealers.

drlodge

- Report to Police so you have that on record and an incident number
- Get yourself checked out at the hospital/Drs whatever
- Call BC for legal advice.

Do it now!

dinyull

essex-commuter wrote:

I've registered the accident with the Police, the VW Touareg was so new it was still registered at the dealers.

A Touareg!!! Fark me you've been lucky!!!

essex-commuter

I'm presuming the larger dent was me and the smaller deeper dent next to the bonnet edge was caused by part of my bike.

weezyswiss

essex-commuter wrote:

cougie wrote:

Aah bugger. Did you have a screen protector on the fenix ?

No I didn't. I bought one but was never happy with the clarity so removed it :?

Sorry to hear about your accident. Depending upon how deep the scratch is, you'll be amazed at how rubbing it out with toothpaste works. Sounds strange, but it is a mild abrasive and it has worked on my garmin face before

memsley89

WeezySwiss wrote:

essex-commuter wrote:

cougie wrote:

Aah bugger. Did you have a screen protector on the fenix ?

rubbing it out with toothpaste works

If nothing else it'll make you feel better, if only for an instant