On my Friday morning commute I was coming down a main road but I was coming down the inside faster than the cars. A car was wanting to come from a side road and a car ahead of me flashed to let him out, the driver didn’t see me coming though, pulled out and over the bonnet I went. I was unhurt with the exception of a grazed knee but my bib tights were torn on the knee and seat post was twisted.

We exchanged details and I emailed him to ask for him to pay for a new seat post and tights, he has agreed on the proviso that I sign a letter to say that he wasn’t at fault to protect him in case i later contact one of those compensation companies. I had no intention of doing this and have said that I will sign to say that I won’t take the matter further but out of principle I won’t sign to say he’s not at fault as I think he is. He’s now said he won’t do anything until he’s taken legal advice.

So what should I do, cut my losses take the £140 replacement costs and sign the letter or should I phone one of those compensation companies after all though I’m not sure where I stand as I was coming down the inside of the traffic and I didn’t take any witness details.

Thanks in advance

Simon

140 quid for free, or try for more via an accident claims solicitor.

Your choice.

The driver who pulled out failed to look and see you, his fault, you are legally entiltled to compensation for injuries and damage from the driver concerned, either via his insurance which he should have or by ex gratia payment from him.

If youre not to bady hurt, take the money and say thankyou.

Sorry to hear you got hit.
IANAL but I don’t think it’s reasonable (or even legal?) to ask you to sign a letter saying he wasn’t at fault if he drove out into a road in which you had right of way. Personally I think we all (as drivers) need to be reminded that ‘letting people in’ isn’t courteous – it’s risky – as you’ve both found out!

I think it’s fair for you to sign a letter to say you won’t take this to a personal injury claim, if you’re happy to do so.

At risk of being accused of being a self-righteous keyboard warrior, this is why filtering on the outside of static traffic is generally a sensible option. I’m not averse to a bit of inside filtering but I prefer to go down the outside as it’s easier for drivers to see me. There’s too many people ‘letting people in’ thinking they’re doing everyone a favour. And often, the person who’s been let in does it in a hurry so as not to hold up the person who’s done them a favour – so they’re certainly not looking for a cyclist coming up the inside…

Say you’ll sign a letter saying that the £140 is the full compensation in regards to the accident and you’ll not seek any more.
That’s pretty standard.

Fault is kind of implicit in him giving you the money!

The third option is you keep pestering him for his insurance details – he should have given these to you (to fail to do so is an offence I believe). Then you raise a claim with his insurer. I don’t *think* you need representation although some insurers will only converse with lawyers.

Either way, I would think you are in a strong position – you can either keep his hush money and he avoids his insurer ever knowing, or you claim against his insurer and he loses no claims etc. It’s a no-brainer really, he has to go the direct route. He’s just trying his luck with his silly waiver form. If he pays you directly then the only way his premiums would increase would be if he mentioned it to the insurer. Of course, he should do this, but I bet most people don’t.

But I absolutely wouldn’t sign a form saying he was without fault. If you did this, he could potentially try and claim the money back from you and you’d have no recourse.

When the same thing happened to me, I drafted a letter saying words to the effect of “I consider this matter settled and won’t make any further claims for medical bills, lost earnings or repairs.” No idea how legally-binding that would be, but both parties seemed happy with it.

Ask him why you should sign a false statement to do him a favour.

You are already doing him a favour by not insisting to do it through his insurance company.

He’s not in a position to be making demands really.

(You are though)

Thanks both, for me the crux of it has become the issue of me coming down the inside, if legally that would mean I’m in the wrong then I will accept that, put it down to experience and not pursue it any further but if not then I might consider taking it further.

Out of interest I did always did ride down the outside but was nearly wiped out by someone turning right without looking or signalling, I can’t win!

No you’re not in the wrong. I mean, perhaps from a self-preservation point of view it can be considered hazardous and a bit daft but from a legal point of view the onus is on the driver crossing traffic to ensure it’s safe to cross.

There are plenty of cycle lanes / bus lanes / wide roads where filtering on the left is pretty standard and therefore must be considered legal, so I’d suggest that it depends on the individual circumstances of your case.

Overtaking and Filtering whilst Cycling

I’d like to see someone claim a cyclist was at fault for riding on the inside of traffic when that’s where all the cycle lanes are 🙂

If it was me, I’d tell him not to worry, I’ll report it to the police and go through his insurance company instead if he doesn’t want to settle it directly.

Thanks all and thanks for the link Superficial, very helpful.

I’ll sleep on it but if he wants to be funny about it then it’s good to know where I stand.

It may be a company car, i got hit a few years ago by a company car driver, he paid outfor damage as he didnt want his boss to find out as he had the wife in the car out of work hours, he waas only allowed to use the vehicle for work purposes and carry no non work related passengers.

Get in touch with an accident claims company ASAP.

Do not sign anything.

I got hit side on from a motorist who claimed he didn’t see me.

Mind you, I was injured (2 broken metatarsals) & bike / equipment damaged.

I got a very substantial payout that I was very happy with.

Give your bike a good check over too, especially the fork and front wheel. Can seem alright with a quick glance, but a lot can be bent/cracked if you’ve gone into the side of a car. Was certainly the case for me anyway!

Making a claim to an insurance company after an accident is a bit like making love to a beautiful woman…

8)

Just an update on this, I had a call back from a solicitor but as I wasn’t injured or had time off work then they weren’t interested and if I did pursue it myself out of principle the most compensation I could hope for would be for the damage to me equipment i.e. £140. His advice was to sign the letter and take the money.

As a general principle I don’t think it’s a good idea to sign away things for a short term gain.

Some things that occur to me:-

Have you had your bike inspected for damage – a substantial front impact – I’d be wanting some assurance that steerers, forks etc weren’t stressed/damaged.

What happens if you start to get medical problems at a later date

What’s to stop him taking your letter and then countersuing you for the XS on his insurance or the damage to his car.

I’d be really concerned about the latter.

ok you now have a post from a solicitor . don’t sign a letter accepting he was not at fault . tell him straight that you will accept the money plus some token towards bruising scrapes etc in full and final settlement if not insurance details so you can deal with it properly.

If you accept in writing he was not at fault then the only fault party is you he could sue you.

I also would worry about my “Full and Final” if there was the slightest chance you could develop some medical issues from this.

thanks,

My bike is fine I’ve given it a good check over, the knee is fine now, it was just a graze.

I have considered him coming back at me but the letter will state that no one was at fault, i.e. a knock for knock.

I’ll mull it over a bit more though

no one was at fault ie a knock for knock . I disagree with your understanding and use of language( in this context) but if you express things this way you will in practical terms achieve your desired result .