A new case reported today. Speed & overtaking

[T.C]

This case was reported today.

Although not directly motorcyclce related, it is relevant as the issue of speed applies across the board to all road users.

In simple terms, be careful how you overtake.


JOHN ROBERT PYKETT (ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF GRAEME PYKETT) (Claimant) v (1) EBONY CLEMENT (2) NIG INSURANCE PLC (Defendants) (3) AVIVA (Part 20 Defendant) (2011)

[2011] EWHC 2925 (QB)

QBD (Bradford) (Coulson J) 9/11/2011

PERSONAL INJURY - NEGLIGENCE - ROAD TRAFFIC

CAUSATION : CONTRIBUTORY NEGLIGENCE : DRIVERS : FINDINGS OF FACT : ROAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS : SPEED : LIABILITY RELATING TO ROAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENT : FINDINGS ABOUT CAUSATION : ALLEGED SPEEDING WHEN ATTEMPTS MADE TO OVERTAKE

A driver had not contributed to or caused a road traffic accident by speeding up as another driver attempted to overtake him. He had maintained a steady course in all the circumstances and the accident had been caused by the unsafe driving of that other driver.

The Pt 20 claimant driver (C) and her insurer sought damages from the Pt 20 defendant, representing a deceased driver (P), for personal injuries sustained as the result of a road traffic accident which it was alleged P had contributed to or caused.

C had been driving her car with three passengers along a road which had a number of bends and dips. P had been driving his car in front and a van had been driving behind her.

C had attempted to overtake P's vehicle but had to pull back into the lane upon seeing another car driving towards them. After passing a number of bends, C again attempted to overtake P's car. However, she was unable to do so and continued driving in the wrong lane for some distance when a van drove around the corner and a collision occurred between it, P's car and C's car.

C and one of her passengers sustained serious injuries for which C's insurers paid sums. It was accepted that C was negligent and had to bear the major part of the responsibility for the accident, but C and her insurers alleged that P had driven negligently and caused or contributed to the accident by speeding up when C began to overtake so as to prevent her from overtaking and moving back into the correct lane.

The court considered evidence from passengers in C's car, a passenger in P's car, the driver of the van behind C and the driver of the van involved in the collision.

HELD: The cause of the accident was the woeful driving of C who made not one but two dangerous attempts to overtake P where she should not have done. P did not speed up or slow down during C's dangerous overtaking manoeuvre.

The weight of the evidence pointed to that conclusion, including evidence from the driver of the van behind C, an entirely independent witness with the best view whose evidence was entirely reliable. To the extent that there were any changes in P's speed, those were gradual, and were explained by the changes in the road conditions.

It amounted to maintaining a steady course in all the circumstances and complied with the Highway Code. It was not for P to slow down or to take other steps merely to assist C to avoid the manifest dangers that her driving had created, Smith v Cribben (1994) PIQR P218 CA (Civ Div) followed.

C should simply have abandoned her second attempt to overtake and should have pulled in behind P's car, a manoeuvre which would have been very easy to execute. The evidence also suggested that C had always been aware that she was wholly at fault for the accident

Judgment for Part 20 defendants
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[tvchimp]

Is there a TL;DR for this?

Or a point as to why you've posted it?



[edit]

Nevermind, just slightly read it.


Your point of 'be careful how you overtake'... Isn't that pretty common sense? I mean, you wouldn't overtake on a blind corner whilst doing a wheelie just because you could, would you?..
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[Daimo]

Nothing to do with speed in my eyes.

Thats just bad driving from C and not paying enough road attention. You either go, or sit behined the traffic. You only go if theres enough space, and you can see far enough down the road to make a safe overtake.

C's fault for not driving correctly. If the van was doing the speed limit, the question has to be asked (officially) why we're they overtaking?

[T.C]

[Rogerborg]

Thanks, I appreciate you posting these.

The claimant sounds like a complete C.
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[c-m]

I like your postings of cases and case law, but really this has nothing to do with anything other than dangerous/careless driving.

It was found that a driver that caused a fatal collision by trying two dangerous overtakes was liable for that collision.

This is a really odd one to post up as it doesn't tell us anything any ordinary road user doesn't already know. I'm confused
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[Andy_Pagin]

I was in a similar scenario recently, though it didn't result in an accident.

I had a old model black BMW tailgating me at 40mph on a 40mph single carriageway, as we approach a sweeping left hander with pedestrian islands he decides to force his way past me, he gets level with me, an inch from my handlebars, realises I'm not going to dive towards the curb to let him cut me up, so he pulls back, accelerates hard and goes the wrong side of the pedestrian islands hitting I reckon 70-80mph, passes me, continues around the blind bend past the four bumper to bumper cars in front of me before pulling in.

Similar one last night, overtakes me and swerves hard left to avoid hitting an ambulance coming the other way, which incidentally he couldn't possibly have failed to see.
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[T.C]

[Rogerborg]

Something significant (for me) is that the overtaken driver was held completely blameless, even though...

[salty21]

whilst we're on the subject of overtaking.

If i was following a vehicle in a 40 zone and they were travelling at 35mph, would it be acceptable for me to overtake at say 45-50mph for the short time it would take to overtake?, or would i have to overtake at a speed of no more than 40mph?.

If i had to guess the answer i would guess overtake at no more than 40mph. But logically it would be safer to overtake quickly and spend less time in the oncoming lane.
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[Kickstart]

Hi

Getting past more quickly and safely isn't a legal defense for speeding.

All the best

Keith
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[J.M.]

Reading this. I can't help but think of a question in the Theory test which said in an event of someone tailgating you, you should gradually slow down and increase the gap in front to let them pass. Parts of me think that P should have done this though.

The remaining 99% of me agrees with Roger that C is just a complete C, however.

[anthony_r6]

I find that following a car doing a little less than the speed limit, seemingly without reason, is frustrating. But I don't overtake on town roads where there are turn offs, bends, tight spaces etc. Exceptions are heavy goods vehicles.

Filtering when traffic is slow or stopped I do a lot. But overtaking a vehicle moving at near the speed limit is just not worth risking with the potential dangers involved.

Thanks for posting - interesting read.
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[Rogerborg]

[Skudd]

I haven't read all the posts, but the OP. but it is usual when being over taken to come off the gas slightly to allow the person doing the over taking to get back in to the flow of traffic.
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