On a roadie ride today, me and a few mates cycling down a Suffolk fen road B1123 good size road, white lines down the middle.

Whilst we were riding two a breast, there was ample space for a car to pass and a clear view to the horizon.

Along comes a Skoda Fabia shitbucket ref R615 YGV in red/rust, overtakes me (at the back) and I watch him/her target the front cyclist and side swip him with the car and speed away.

The front cyclist is a young chap, good cyclist bit shaken bruised hand but no real physical damage.

I was at the back and took the details so rang the police, result: “its an RTA and as such we will not make a report over the phone, you have to go into a police station within 24hrs and fill in forms”.

To my mind this was not an rta like a little fender bender it was someone assaulting a person with a car, I could not believe how loaded against the cyclist the response was.

So if anyone knows this person red skoda R615YGV lives around Halesworth Suffolk, please feel free to have a word in his shell like.

(edit reg)

Injury was it not (however minor) – they should have turned out, no?

That plate is registered to a Rover 820i. Cloned?

Why not call the for an Ambulance first, then request the police on that 999 call, they may have more interest if they thing there is an injury.

Would avoid using the term RTA as the A is for accident, indicating no fault, at minimum it’s a collision, as this implies fault.

Well that’s reassuring 😕

Pretty terrible response that, what on earth has to happen for them to bother taking the details over the phone? Maybe if he’d had spikes on his wheels, like in roman chariot racing?

Sorry wrote that from memory its R615YGV.

I don’t think the Fabia was launched until 2000 (x reg) so unless there’s some sort of weird privat plate going on it won’t be an R reg. Unless it wasn’t a fabia??

In hindsight reporting incident as a hit and run may have got a better response from police.

I got knocked off on purpose after work in manchester, she sped past beeping, very close then at the junction I said ‘whats ur problem’ and i got loads of aggression.
i didnt persist, made a bit of space which gave a run up..next thing took me clean out from the side, bike wrecked but I was amazingly, fine cos I expected it
Police response: didnt ring back then 7days later send me a massive self reporting form to fill in 😐 dont hold out!

I wasn’t aware compliants could be made over the phone. Would they not pop round to the victim’s?

Are you giving up now? Seems worth pursuing given the no. of witnesses.

As for calling it assault, go for it, but difficult to establish – you may manage with the no. of witnesses?

get your arse down to the nick and kick off.
they’ll try and fob you off if they think they’ll get away with it.

The car in question is

R615YGV – 1997, SKODA, FELICIA LXI, 1289cc, 5 Door, Petrol, Manual

from a car insurance quote site.

Down to the station to report it with witnesses and don’t take no for an answer, Insist on seeing a senior person / make formal complaint if they don’t take it seriously – its failure to stop at the very lest

look on askmid.co.uk, to see if it hads insurance cover.

all good stuff for the Police.

Truly shocking. Hope your mates ok.

Shame one of you didnt have one of them video cameras. 🙁

Hope the rsole gets whatever is coming to him/her.

tbag – Member

I got knocked off on purpose after work in manchester, she sped past beeping, very close then at the junction I said ‘whats ur problem’ and i got loads of aggression.
i didnt persist, made a bit of space which gave a run up..next thing took me clean out from the side, bike wrecked but I was amazingly, fine cos I expected it
Police response: didnt ring back then 7days later send me a massive self reporting form to fill in dont hold out!

these days GM Police are all over twitter I would have tweeted @ACCGarryShewan you have been imaginative with the hashtags as well #fixingthecrimestats #failtoinvestigate 😉

I find that if you fail to get the service you rightfully expect and deserve from your local Police Service, a Recorded Delivery letter to the Chief Constable works wonders. If that doesn’t work you’ve got the Independent Police Complaints Commission, and if that fails get your local MP involved.

Generally, society gets what it deserves; if we want to make it better we actually have to hold people to account.

I have emailed the details through to the chap who was actually struck by the car and the police response that he report the incident in person at a station.

My worry he is pretty relaxed about the thing, lives in a rural area meaning getting to the station tommorow probably means a drive, still offered service as a witness and I know the others will do the same.

If there are any updates I will report back.

Cheers

Jimx101

Why not call the for an Ambulance first, then request the police on that 999 call, they may have more interest if they thing there is an injury

really? Do you not think they might have something better to do?

Sorry to hear about what happened, hope the police get it sorted and this toe rag gets whats coming!

It’s a fail to stop RTC – at the very least. Though on 1st glance here I would personally initiate an investigation as an assault. Cars kill far FAR more people than knives & guns etc.

It sounds like cross wires on the phone & my impression is that the OP possibly played it down or didn’t explain himself fully & the (probably civilian) call taker didn’t quite ‘get’ what they were being told – they’ve gone down the RTC avenue without considering the wider criminality.

It is legally correct that in the event of a RTC where details have not been exchanged or injury has occurred, should be reported in person within 24 hrs. Encourage him to report it properly and dont play it down.

Bummer, i ride that rode alot!

Ian, if on the balance of probabilities it looks like a crime has occurred: i.e. an assualt as well as than an RTC, the police should record it as a crime. They may well record it as a “fail to stop” as well. Your friend is not legally obliged to go to a police station to report the incident – this obligation applies to drivers of motor vehicles under S170 of the road traffic act 1988. It might be due to confusion over this provision that he was asked to go to the police station.

I’ve been in the situation of receiving a rather slow service from the police following a similar incident where my daughter was side swiped – they did come through in the end – the driver has just been fined about £600.

Get in touch direct if things dont seem to be working out – Jules

cameras are becoming mandatory on bikes now, it seems…

Jules, it was me wot got hit. I’ve been in to Lowestoft station this morning and reported, emphasising our feeling that it was more than just careless. The desk guy seemed fairly on the ball and took time to get all the details down so hopefully it won’t get lost in the system. Will let you know more if and when…

He has to visit the station within 24hrs? If I was him and I was to wake up tomorrow stiff and not feeling up to travelling I’d be ringing the station up to have them visit him at home to take a witness statement. Also, It’d be coincidence to have a couple of witnesses be round with a “get well soon” card for him, and on the spur of the moment offer to make statements about the car seeming to deliberately swing into him ‘out of frustration’.

I realise this will be contentious but more often than not when I have a close shave with a car, it is a crap car.

GB

Gee, I guess one of the ‘barrriers’ to sideswiping another vehicle or cycle is the fear of damaging your own. Not such a worry if you car is already a shed with dents and scratches all over it. 🙁

Not that it helps now but in future if anyone else is ever in this situation that kind of incident probably warrants a 999 call. Deliberate hit and run!

It’s happened to me and the police were very quick to respond, looking for the car and sending someone round to the address to wait for them to return. Arrested and dealt with inside 12hours for me.

Keep following it up and don’t let them get away with just calling it a RTA.

TuckerUK – Member

I find that if you fail to get the service you rightfully expect and deserve from your local Police Service, a Recorded Delivery letter to the Chief Constable works wonders. If that doesn’t work you’ve got the Independent Police Complaints Commission, and if that fails get your local MP involved.
Generally, society gets what it deserves; if we want to make it better we actually have to hold people to account.

You’re right but in my case I didn’t get the full details of the Reg when I got taken out, and knew Id get nowhere cos of this. The police are never going to put effort in, they just humour you – or not in this case, so why bother getting frustrated and more angry over it?
I should have called 999 then maybe they’d have actually done something to find her.

This car wasn’t even crap it was a T-reg BMW and her paint was left all over my pedal and her mirror went flying off 😀

What you should do is return to the incident spot and sellotape 4 or 5 bunches of flowers to the nearest lamp post!

Mark,
Good to know you got into the station.
Hope you dont mind me publicising the incident on here. Worth everyone knowing I thought and TBH I was a bit frustrated after the call.
Let me know if you need a witness.
Ian

If you dont receive the service create an official complaint against the Officer. OTT?

Thats a potentially serious assault being ignored. Dont feel fobbed off or palmed off with ‘stretched resources”

This car wasn’t even crap it was a T-reg BMW

My point exactly – T reg…

GB

Was assaulted by a driver of a crap car (Peugeot ’54 406). Stopped got out, blocked the road and hit me. I texted the reg to a friend (as the car drove away) then called 999. Police rook it VERY seriously. Was interviewed at home that day. Sadly the car was not registered to any owner. But if you see AJ54OBB, Thames Valley Police want to know.

If the registration is legitimate and registered, the Police will follow up. They’ve even tried ID’ing my assailant with ANPR.

We had a similar in the lakes where a **** in an mx5 cut us up pulled in right in front of us (on a double blind bend) then jumped on the brakes (not us disrespecting stopping distances he cut in and braked) didn’t get reg but Cumbria police took it very seriously and had it posted to insurance and Mazda dealers.

They were talking “Assault with a Deadly Weapon”

Time to fit the go-pro to the bike

Why not call the for an Ambulance first,

because…

The front cyclist is a young chap, good cyclist bit shaken bruised hand but no real physical damage.

The front cyclist is a young chap, good cyclist bit shaken bruised hand but no real physical damage.

Shock kills people too.

We had someone cut in on us in a old Audi a couple of years ago. A couple of us riding two abreast on a completely quiet and straight road he cut in and knocks off the outside rider. Swearing at him, he stops his car, then got out and faced up to us. He soon calmed down when I took his car keys out :D.

Shock kills people too.

There is nothing in

The front cyclist is a young chap, good cyclist bit shaken bruised hand but no real physical damage.

that suggests any kind of medical shock. shaken Suggests emotional upset which his mates that are with him can deal with.

What actually has the potential to kill someone is calling for an ambulance when its not identified as required, depleting already stretched resources.

My faith restored in STW. No-one has blamed the cyclist(s). It must’ve been hard, but well done guys.

Hope the Skoda driver gets what they deserve.