first proper ride, first proper accident

[rubber toe]

Hi, I'll keep this as short as poss, yesterday I was riding down a public country lane when, before I could react, I ran straight into a "rope" that had been tied across the lane, luckily the rope snapped but had already thrown the bike off balance and I ended up on the deck, sore hip, knee, wrist and shoulder. My first thought when I realised what had happened was kids being f*****g stupid but it turned out that a farmer was about to take his cows in for milking and he ties this rope to stop them going the wrong way. There was no signs warning and nothing hanging from it so it could be seen, quarter inch thick twine being approached at about 25 / 30 mph just isnt visible soon enough. To cut to the chase, what do I do, insurance or ask him to pay for repairs, is this a criminal or civil case, the police say civil but its a public lane, if that rope had been any higher and not snapped it could have killed me. The bike has suffered obviously, mostly superficial but when the forks are facing forwards the wheel is pointing a little to the left and the handlebars are pointing a little more to the right than they were,I'm ok so I just want the bike put right. Sorry to go on and I've probably left out bits but I need peoples input, I'm about to ring insurance to let them know
Thanks
Rob

[MaybeGuy]

you ring the police, thats what.
____________________
Blue_SV650S wrote: it was a sh1te wheelie, but it proves that he can get it up in 3rd and can do angles. In summery, mattsprattuk is a gobby little sh1tebag, dopehead tw4t, but sadly for all of us, he probably isn't THAT full of sh1te!!
Kickstart wrote: Hi I tend to agree with Matt. All the best Keith

[arry]

It's a civil matter.

I would go through the insurance route, mainly because although you may feel alright now - who knows whether you'll develop any soreness over next couple of days which may lay you up for a while, for example.

Leathers/Helmet etc will all most likely need replacing also?

You could also ask for some form of courtesy transportation if you're stuck without wheels.

[honda_arry]

Ouch.

I remember when I first done my CBT I was a bit nervous so thought stick to country lanes initially, soon realised they are the worst for bike riding! Narrow, constant fear of a car coming the other way around a blind corner, mud on road, pot holes much safer on the main roads.

[Kennypa4]

Personally i would Get the Then see if he will pay for damage via insurance to bike. If not go see a lawyer and sue his butt in court .
____________________
Kenny
RBLS Riders
Scottishbikers Forum

[ClaireBear]

Ooh not good. Are you sure there was no signs or anyone standing there giving orders eg to slow down? If so then the farmer is definitely in the wrong so speak to the farmer about repair, if no luck then it will have to be done through insurance.

[rubber toe]

Ive just finished talking to insurance and the wheels are in motion so to speak, I did get the police involved, they came but said it was civil, made sure we got each others details, gave me a ref number and then went basicaly.
My gloves are a little scuffed and there is a very small scratch on the helmet but they are not worth bothering about, I really wasnt going that fast. I am a new rider and at the moment only use the bike for "pleasure" so not too fussed about courtesy bike, spose it would be nice to try different bike but it doesnt matter.
Just spoken to farmers wife and turns out we kind of know each other through both families somewhere down the line so the conversation wasnt the blazing row I imagined, she did mention about doing it without insurance involvement but as I said the wheels are already turning. Sit back and wait now for some company called Teceris to ring about picking bike up. Hohum
Clairebear: def no signs or people were visible but you can bet that as soon as I'd left they put some up, not to warn other people but to cover themselves

[rubber toe]

Forgot to say, this has not put me off at all as I know it was nothing to do with my riding and was a fairly out of the ordinary...........or is it?

[Jeansy001]

you always gotta hayour wits about you in a lane, theres always some tit who tries to do a three point turn in the lane

[Wilson123]

Near where I live, dogwalkers were in the news for tying razor wire from tree to tree and fence to fence, some guy died because of it.

Still, make the bastard pay, you could've been killed, who gives a fuck if your family are friends with theirs or whatever, think of what would've happened if you had been killed. If he is fully willing to pay for all damages then fine, why not, but if he tries to fuck you over for any more than a penny go straight to the insurance/police
____________________
Doug97 wrote: Fuck you, what they did was awesome. You just wish you had the balls to be like them, instead of being constantly afraid that there's a rule somewhere out there you might be breaking.

[lozzypop1]

Highways Act 1980 section 162

It is an offence to stretch a rope or similar object across a public right of way. In some circumstances, a temporary rope or wire to restrain farm animals may be authorised across a public footpath (but no other class of right of way), provided that it is readily visible and can be easily and safely removed and replaced by path users.

Taken from: statutelaw.gov.uk

[Wise1]

^^ I agree, it's not a civil matter, it's criminal. Fair enough you did not suffer much damage however. What if the rope had been about neck height when it caught you? It could have crushed your windpipe or worse.
____________________
Current - 2007 Suzuki Bandit GSF1250 - 1999 Suzuki TL1000R
Previous - GSXR750 SRAD, Fireblade, ZXR750, CBR600

[chris-red]

[Jeansy001]

should definately price up repairs to you bike, helmet ( no matter how little damage to the exterior of you lid it could have lost its protection !!! you must replace it ) leathrs and tell him its his fault and you will take him to court if he doesnt pay. go to another police station, show them the information just given about tying a rope across the highway and see if they agree with the other police station.

[lozzypop1]

[Wise1]

[lozzypop1]

Oopsie! And therein lies my proof!
____________________
Funny, I used to hate being spanked as a child!
Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand.

[rubber toe]

well the bikes gone to the "approved repairers" I've yet to go back to the spot and see if any changes have been made in the way of visible warnings but if nothings been done or there is any kind of hassle whatsoever in regards to my claim then I will definitely take it further (still might anyway, one way or another)...... H.S.E and the press might be interested.

[Drew]

[Mark65]

Shit dude , dont let the lazy police off with there civil excuse, if you or i tied a rope across the street we would be done for it and the quote from the highway offence says may be authorised. he has put no warnings up and no markers on the rope itself, ask for the senior officer at the station and ask him why his officers seem to think its civil. there are no poor farmers so claim for new gear.

Mark
____________________
07 Yamaha YBR125, 07 Honda CG125 , 15 CBR300R (Chocolate Crank, Deaded), 16 CB500FA, 19 Honda Forza 300, 70 Suzuki SV650

[lozzypop1]

[ajb]

Just to be clear, I assume by country lane you just mean a single track PUBLIC road and not a briddleway/footpath?

A rope across a highway would be an offence, and 'reasonable warning' would constitute signage etc. up the road in both directions.
____________________
CBR125R '05 > CB500 '00 > CBR600F '99

[rubber toe]

Yea its a public highway, farmers/walkers/ horseriders and cyclists are the main users, not well used by road traffic but it is not private and not a bridleway or footpath, apparently its been adopted by the council, its called "Bacup Old Road" if you want to google earth it. I honestly think the gloves and helmet are ok, hardly anything to see on them and Ive already got the insurance on the case so is it possible to claim afterwards for the gear ?

[smegbrains]

I'd be banging on the police station door and demanding more action and an answer to why the police officers who attended have a complete lack of common sense.

There is no way that's a civil case, it could quite easily have killed you. As Lozzypop said it's in the Highway Code as well.

Don't even begin to think about letting them off easy with this, it's foolhardy in the extreme by the farmer.

I know that exact road and have ridden it myself a good few times, never had this issue but now you've said it I'll be crawling up there!
____________________
Current Bike: Honda CBR 600F
Ex Bikes: Suzuki GX 125

[Jeansy001]