Cycling Accident

[markstev27]

Hi all

I'm after a bit of advice. I was hit by a van today as it passed me extremely close when I was cycling. Its wing mirror hit me near my upper arm and shoulder.

It carried on and I managed to flag it down. The driver got out and said I was swerving on the road which was a shock.

I managed to get his reg but he wouldn't tell me anything else

I've reported it to the Police and I've found out it wasn't taxed or MOT'd

What should I do next?

I'm waiting for a call back from the Police too

 

[Slick]

I suppose its a waiting game as long as you aren't injured.

Give the police a chance to contact this person, but it will unlikely be high on their list of priorities, unfortunately.

 

[classic33]

See the thread, Accident Advice, either in this section or Commuting.
Basic advice on what you can be doing whilst twiddling your thumbs.

Write down what you know to date. Making a point of getting any names given on paper. Memory may be questioned later.

Edited to add
See the thread Statement Template for how to write what you have up into a form that the police find easy to work with.

 

[Drago]

Write everything down now while its fresh in your mind, sign and date it. Original notes made as soon as practicable after the incident are valuable in court.

 

[cyberknight]

usual victim blaming game from the driver , glad your ok .

 

[RoadRider400]

Are you covered for cycling on any of your insurance policies? I second writing down what happened. Put every bit of tiny detail you have in case you are asked about it. Start from the beginning of the ride and finish when you get back home. Take lots of photos of any damage to you, clothing or bike.

 

[vickster]

If you have any injuries (not clear from OP), get checked by your GP or A&E so they are documented

 

[HobbesOnTour]

Hello @markstev27 , sorry to read of your experience and I hope you're ok.

What should I do next?

I'm going to come at this from another angle.......

How do you feel about cycling now?

A scary situation like that can put a lot of us off, make cycling unpleasant or sometimes affect those around us more than ourselves.

These things can be worth paying attention to for how they occurred and how we responded to them.

No vehicle should come close enough to hit you (even with a mirror). However, there is no harm in replaying the situation to see what can be learned to prevent similar from happening again.

Whatever about the legality of the situation, for me, the most important thing is to be as safe as possible and not to have any unexpected shocks, especially from behind.
I have found a mirror to be very useful for giving me a sense of control.
I have also found it helpful to prioritise what is the safest thing to do over what I should be able to do.
If close passes are a regular part of life on a particular route, perhaps consider different times or different routes.

Best of luck!

 

[tom73]

Remember what ever you write down keep it clear, to the point and stick to facts , what happen before , during and after. Not what you think may have happened and why it happened. Or it's never happened before why now. Any case in court or not are only interested in facts and nothing else. Don't include names if you don't know for sure they are correct. You may find easier to write down how you felt at the time and since separately from your over all statement. It's easy to turn it from clear and to the point into something all over the place.
Take photos of not just any damage but of the place it happened , inc the over all road lay out. So you can show a good all round view of it. If you can around the same time of day is even better.
Find out and make a note of the official weather at the time and place to happened.
Any injuries documented at the time or only came to light since and documented after the event.
Can be include but make it clear that it is the case and if needed be ready and understand you will need to produce them.
As with the rest your account of any injuries need to factual not what you think they said or what you think you've got.

 

[alicat]

What an utter b*llend of a driver. Didn't stop until you caught up with him. Not taxed, not MOTed, refused to exchange personal and insurance details even though the vehicle he was driving collided with you. Didn't give you the required 1.5 m distance. Blamed you for 'swerving'. I make that seven instances of poor judgment to you/lack of regard for other road users.

Good on you for reporting him and I hope the police treat the matter with the seriousness which it deserves.

 

[Cycleops]

Sorry @markstev27 not a nice thing to happen and potentially could have been much more serious.
If no tax MOT then certainly uninsured and even if he was the no MOT would invalidate it. The Old Bill will likely get hold of him when he goes through an ANPR camera, take the van off him and prosecute but that doesn't help you. Any injuries? If you've got some personal cover great but unfortunately you won't get anything off that barsteward.

 

[toffee]

Sorry @markstev27 not a nice thing to happen and potentially could have been much more serious.
If no tax MOT then certainly uninsured and even if he was the no MOT would invalidate it. The Old Bill will likely get hold of him when he goes through an ANPR camera, take the van off him and prosecute but that doesn't help you. Any injuries? If you've got some personal cover great but unfortunately you won't get anything off that barsteward.

No mot will not invalid 3rd party liability on insurance.

 

[markstev27]

Need to find a way to get hold of their insurance details or at least inform their company

 

[vickster]

Need to find a way to get hold of their insurance details or at least inform their company

Police can help, or a personal injury lawyer (if you were injured). Do you have any sort of legal cover through an insurance policy/cycling org or employee assistance through work/a union?

Unfortunately, I'd be somewhat surprised if they are insured. MIB might be able to help if you are (badly) injured/bike damaged and they're not insured
https://www.mib.org.uk/making-a-claim/claiming-against-an-uninsured-driver/
https://www.mib.org.uk/making-a-claim/

 

[alicat]

You have reasonable cause to find the registered keeper from the DVLA.

When you are writing up your account of the incident, write up as much as you can of the driver's description. That will stop him telling the police that he lent the vehicles to a few mates over the time of the incident.