Compensation for clueless pedestrian

[bigdom86]

Just read this one:

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/payout-for-yoga-teacher-hit-by-cyclist-as-she-crossed-road-on-her-phone-a4169716.html

anyone had an incident similar where the pedestrian has tried to push charges on you?

I had a similar incident with a jogger who ran out between traffic wearing headphones and I smashed into her ( ) - luckily tons of witnesses including a medic van backed me up and nothing came of it, but just wondered as this would occur pretty often and could perhaps set some sort of precedent in future cases where a motorist hits a dozey pedestrian

[bigdom86]

for interest I just saw this one too including a biker

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/jun/19/prince-william-convoy-police-inquiry-woman-hit

[Polarbear]

It's exactly the same if a car hits a cyclist. Up to the car to prove the cyclist is at fault or he's going to get done.

Should be the same with cyclists and pedestrians.

Go watch them in London flying round everywhere as fast as they can go, expecting the pedestrians to get out of their way.

No sympathy from me.
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[Bhud]

When money's the prize, there's always going to be the "Ooh whiplash!" type... You've got to be really careful. The Instagram yoga pose says it all really. We're all walking wallets... A hard pinch to cause reddening on the skin here and there, a carefully chosen moment of lying still on the ground with your eyes closed, and Bob's your uncle, a judge who's never done any sort of combat sports deems that you were knocked unconscious and you're entitled to your £££££.

A shame about the old woman - she was probably the old-school no-harm-no-foul type, but she took some serious damage on this occasion, stepping out somewhere in the road probably because of her failing mental faculties.

[bigdom86]

[Riejufixing]

[Polarbear]

[Sister Sledge]

I read elsewhere (Metro?) that he sounded an air horn as he approached and she heard him. She retreated but he'd thought she would continue forwards - both their evasive actions matched and they collided.

What gets me is the judge decided that the woman was on the road already which made the cyclist liable. With that logic I think I'll go stand in a main road and run at oncoming cars. When one hits me I'll be in the right and will sue them!

But, both 50/50 guilty in this case but she is getting compensation. Not sure why but perhaps lost earnings? I dunno.
I do feel an appeal is coming over it..
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CCM 404 DS

[Polarbear]

[iooi]

Well given the judge ruled a 50/50 fault. The cyclist now needs to sue her.

Can't lose can he....
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Just because my bike was A DIVVY, does not mean i am......

[Sister Sledge]

Dunno about him/her having insurance but do agree that any road user needs some form of cover. I'm not a cyclist - does household insurance cover such things?
If anyone's a cyclist - how much does dedicated bicycle insurance cost on average?

Same goes with horses etc. Personally I think they need cover because what they do could well damage, injure or kill.

Finally, it's my personal opinion that ALL users of roads should have some form of lesson or qualification for it. They're all mentioned in The Highway Code.
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CCM 404 DS

[weasley]

I am a cyclist and occasional horsist. Third party liability cover usually comes as a part of membership of a society; I am a member of British Cycling which covers up to £15m in third party liability. I was previously a member of the British Horse Society (£30m of cover on certain membership levels) and British Eventing (£20m cover).

Neither cycling nor horsing requires mandatory third party cover for use on the road though. Nor, indeed, does pedestrianing.
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[T.C]

I have covered this before, and this is nothing new.

Some of you may recall some of the posts I have put up in the past for example a drunk was lying in the carriageway at 1am in the morning and got hit by the car.

Driver was held 80% liable because it was deemed that the driver should have anticipated the possibility of a drunk pedestrian either wondering into or being in the road at that time of day.

In the case of cyclists, it s not uncommon for the cyclist to be deemed (along with al other classes of road user) because the courts have deemed that cyclists are in many cases their own worst enemies in the way that they ride, but car drivers (and other road users) have a duty of care and should have anticipated the liklihood of their being numpty cyclists or pedestians according to the area in which they are driving or riding.

This is not a dangerous precedent, simply a precedent that was established about 20 years ago.

If you want worse examples than the one here, I will happily dig them out. There have been some real shockers and unfortunately, even now I still get enquiries coming through where I would love to say to them “P**s Off,” but I can’t because of the cases that have gone before.

Many cyclists will put the claim in the hands of the home contents insurers (where they have all risk), some do have specific third arty insurance or the individua can be sued personally but the defendant simply offers to pay at the rate of something like £1 per weeks or the like.

Because the actions of the individual may not be deemed reasonable to most of us, in law that does not mean they don't have a case mainly because of what is called contributory negligence and case law, and rememeber to prove a case in a road traffic law case is a very different test in a civil law case.
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It is better to arrive 30 seconds late in this world, than 30 years early in the next

[Sister Sledge]

That's all great information, thanks. It does make more sense since types of thinking was explained.
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CCM 404 DS

[bigdom86]

[DJP]

I had a pissed up pedestrian run into me from the side about 5 years ago.

Cheeky twunt tried blaming me. No idea if my insurance paid out since I never heard any more of it.
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That's http not https

[Serendipity]

The elderly lady interfacing with the SEG Police rider happened at a pedestrian crossing. The guys tend to use whistles rather than sirens so quite feasible that there was an unfortunate combination of green man and deafness leading to her stepping out. Very unlucky for everyone involved and recovering from serious injuries at 83 is not gonna be quick or easy.

https://i.imgur.com/pf8LXjDh.jpg

Interesting that the SEG have given up the VFR1200 and gone for the R1200RS. I don’t think I’ve seen them since they changed. I often seem to run into them on escort duties between RAF Northolt and the centre of London.

This whole issue of liability is a bit of an eye opener if you ride a motorbike in a busy town like London. It may seem spectacularly unfair that a pedestrian can sprint into your path from between parked vehicles and it’s your fault, but that’s how it is. It would be nice if the blame industry could look at each case on its own merits rather than just base everything on previous decisions, but that’s not likely to change.

And people looking at their phones while crossing the road is only going to get worse. It’s already the norm. I see it on a daily basis.
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2007 CBF1000-ABS - Commuter heaven | 1994 CBR600FR - Awaiting defibrillation

[bigdom86]

[Polarbear]

[T.C]

[Easy-X]

With regards to the original case I guess we've all had that moment where there's the two of you approaching the same doorway in the office... I go left, they go left, "jinx!" awkward chuckle as you both repeat the same fiasco for the second time on the right. "After you" "No, after you!" "I insist" etc.

If there are plenty of pedestrians about surely the sane thing to do is travel at a speed where one can stop safely in an emergency? Swerving is for things falling off lorries and the like (where one might predict the trajectory) not for dynamic objects (i.e. stoopid ppl) who could dart about in any direction.
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[Bhud]

It transpires that she claimed for costs against the cyclist, and was awarded full costs, estimated to be around £100K in legal fees (he has to pay hers as well as his).

She is said to have a "very attractive appearance", and was awarded nearly £5K for an 8mm cut on her lip.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/21/cyclist-crashed-into-woman-mobile-phone-pay-compensation-london

Isn't justice supposed to be blind?

[Polarbear]

[Bhud]

This case has a lot to do with looks, and while I'm no looker personally, I think even if you looked like Brad Pitt you might not come out on top, in the light of the apparent motives of the judge in supporting the female claimant, as revealed by her "very attractive appearance" remark. Better not make a technical mistake or omission at trial either, or you could be ruined, and quite possibly, it wouldn't matter because one party here has been deemed a lot more important than the other. Probably, we are seen as walking wallets, financially expendable like WW1 soldiers, by this type of judge.

In the article, the losing party (I'm going to call him that, because it's just ridiculous to say this is technically a 50/50 outcome when he's the one liable to pay £104000) says it was his fault as he could have counterclaimed the moment she started her claim against him, but didn't. Omitting to put in a counterclaim was an odd decision, to say the least. I also note that he chose The Guardian to bring this issue to light and to say his piece. The Guardian, of all choices. Maybe he really is the sum of all Londonista stereotypes. Been at the soya lattes for too long, etc.

Just sounds to me like a predator (or maybe 2 predators?) sniffed out exactly the right sort of prey, with incredible accuracy. I can't imagine the guy now doing the sensible thing and spending every last penny appealing and counterclaiming against her, so that when he finally declares bankruptcy there's nothing in the coffers to pay her legal fees. He will probably never admit the not-so-hidden dynamic in this case, either. That could be deemed sexist, after all.

Oh well, he could have counterclaimed and been entitled to 50%, and he could have spoken to rebut his liability to pay fees at the fees hearing (at the end of the case), which would have halved his £4K liability and annulled the £100K costs award against him. But he didn't, and apparently that makes it perfectly OK to ruin him.

A real pigeon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lP6N6z3SvYo

[Easy-X]

I was wondering that too...

A few years ago some debt collection agency chased me for something stoopid like an unpaid phone bill. I can't remember exactly what it was but it was only something like ~£30. They put in a small claims court thing and added on lots of admin fees and legal costs so it was something like £150 being claimed...

Anyhoo, in the court filing they neglected to put any actually proof of the debt like, I dunno, a contract or invoice... you know, the basics So I counterclaimed for my time being wasted "investigating the matter."

One week before the case was due to come up some junior rang me to ask if we could both "drop hands" (as obviously they'd fucked up their paperwork) and I said "No"

"WTF man! That sounded like a sweet deal?!"

No, I said... I've spent a lot of time on this so I want recompense. They sent me a cheque for £75 and the case was dropped

tl;dr always, ALWAYS counterclaim in civil cases regardless!
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