Cycling Accident Claim

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    Cycling Accident Claim

    24 HOUR ADVICE

    0800 0523 693

    Although only a tiny proportion of Britain’s 7.5 million cyclists are injured on the roads each year, an accident when cycling can be life-changing. Staying safe on a bike is of course the number one priority for anyone who takes to two wheels, but if the worst should happen it pays to know what you should do.

    Call now for free advice 0800 0523 693

    Cycling Accident Case Studies

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    How many people are injured or killed while cycling?

    Pedal cyclists are among the most vulnerable road users. Despite advances in safety equipment, increasing numbers of cycle lanes, and changes to the Highway Code designed to protect riders, the number of accidents involving cycles on the UK’s roads is on the rise. The latest government figures show that there were 141 fatalities in 2020 and an increase of 5% since 2004. 4,215 cyclists were reportedly seriously injured – a rise of 26% over the same period and nearly 12,000 were slightly injured.

    However, the rise is partly due to the fact that more and more of us are taking to two wheels. In 2018, cyclists in the UK pedalled a total of 3.3 billion miles – up a third on the mileage clocked up 25 years ago.

    That means on average a cyclist is injured for every 4,300 miles ridden. When put like that it becomes clear that the benefits of riding a bicycle – both to our health and the environment – far outweigh the risks.

    How our big cities fare for cycling safety

    It follows that cycling in the cities of the UK poses a greater danger than using other roads. In 2019, 12 cyclists were killed on the roads of the capital (8.5% of the UK total) and 770 were seriously injured (18% of the UK total). Those figures were an increase of 6% on the previous year though levels of cycling in central London rose by 5%.

    Elsewhere in our big cities, the figures are somewhat mixed. In Manchester, there were 552 reported cycling accidents – a 10% drop on the previous year. It is notable that during the same time period, cycling casualties on all of Scotland’s roads have more than halved in the last 20 years.

    What this mean for you as a cyclist

    All of these numbers somewhat mask that every accident, every injury and every death are life changing events for bereaved families or those that are involved in a serious accident when cycling. It’s also true that there are likely many more collisions and injuries among the cycling community. It is a fact that many cyclists simply don’t report accidents that they’ve been involved in.

    The increased take up of bike riding is great news for public health and our efforts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. It is perhaps just as important that all riders report incidents they’re involved in order to inform government and local authority policies in order to keep on driving safety initiatives.

    An accident when cycling can have serious consequences for quality of life, the ability to work and to carry out all the things that matter to you. If you have sustained injuries when riding your bike, get in touch with our experts to find out what further action you can take.

    Call now for free advice 0800 0523 693

    Cycling Accident Claims – Frequently Asked Questions

    The law governing a cycling accident claim is very straight forward.

    All drivers have a legal duty to take care for the safety of cyclists.

    So you may be able to claim compensation if you are involved in a cycling accident caused by a negligent driver.

    Try to get hold of the names and addresses of any witnesses, and the name and collar number of any police officers who came to the scene.

    You should take pictures of the damage to your bike, your clothing and any bruising or other injuries.

    Start gathering whatever documents you can to help prove your losses – purchase receipts and/or repair estimates for your bike – receipts for damaged clothes – wage slips and so on.

    You shouldn’t discuss the case with the insurers for the other driver! It’s very common for insurers to try to “buy off” claims for far less than their true value.

    Then of course you should get in touch with Mulderrigs for some free initial advice!

    Most cycling accident claims are now dealt with via an online claims portal and are settled within 12 months of the first call.

    In substantial claims (worth £25,000 or more) the rules are slightly different and cases can go on for a little longer.

    A detailed Letter of Claim has to be sent to the careless driver and the insurers, and they then have four months to investigate the case.

    We may also need to wait a little longer for medical evidence, and it may be necessary to bring court proceedings.

    But the vast majority of our cycling injury claims are now settled without court proceedings.

    And even in the more serious cycling accident claims most of our cases settle within 12 to 18 months.

    There are a couple of situations where you may think you can’t make a claim:-

    1. If you are the victim of a “hit & run” accident, where the responsible driver has left the scene and can’t be found, or
    2. if you do know the identity of the responsible driver, but also know that they are uninsured.

    In either of those cases we may still be able to help you claim compensation via the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB).

    The MIB meets compensation claims for the victims of uninsured drivers.

    It’s fair to say that claims to the MIB can be difficult, and sometimes drag on for longer than you would like.

    But it may allow you to claim compensation in what would otherwise have been a hopeless situation.

    If you have been the victim of an uninsured driver or a “hit & run” accident, please just get in touch.

    We will be happy to give you some free initial advice.

    We will be able to tell you very quickly, and free of charge, whether or not your case is worth pursuing.

    The government is determined to drive down the cost of compensation claims.

    With that in mind all cases with a value of £25,000 or less now have to be submitted to insurers through an online claims portal.

    By and large, this system has worked well in terms of speeding up the process.

    Only difficult or substantial cases are dealt with outside the portal, and we will quickly be able to assess whether yours is one of those.

    Even if your case is dealt with outside the portal, all parties have to abide by the rules which encourage the parties to settle the claim without court proceedings.

    The vast majority of our cycling accident claims are settled without court proceedings.

    And even when proceedings are necessary most cases are settled long before a trial.

    When cases do go ahead as a trial the experience of giving evidence is rarely as difficult as people imagine.

    We have previously published some very straightforward pointers about giving evidence at court.

    The amount of compensation for injuries suffered in cycling accidents depends on the extent of the injury and the level of financial losses.

    Common injuries in these cases often involve soft-tissue injuries to the face, neck, back, arms or legs.

    But of course there can be lots of other injuries arising from a bicycle accident, ranging from the most trivial to the most serious.

    We will gather all the necessary expert medical evidence, and documentary evidence of any financial losses.

    We will then discuss the value of your case with you before any settlement negotiations with insurers.

    Our most recent cycling accident settlements range from £4,000 to £65,000

    We will discuss the fee arrangements carefully with you before asking you to sign our terms and conditions.

    A “No win no fee” agreement is usually the best option for most cycling accident claims.

    There are no “upfront” fees, no hidden charges, and we will never leave you out of pocket.

    Most importantly, if you lose the case you pay nothing at all.

    And we have never had a complaint from a client in relation to fees.

    Even if you think that you were partly to blame you may still be able to claim compensation.

    A claim for compensation isn’t like a criminal case, where there are really only two possible outcomes – “guilty” or “not guilty”.

    In a compensation claim, responsibility for the accident can be split between the parties in whatever proportion the court considers reasonable.

    Of course we try to win our clients’ cases on a 100% basis

    But even if there are genuine arguments about who was at fault our job is to make sure that responsibility is apportioned in your favour as far possible.

    “No helmet?”

    The law doesn’t currently require cyclists to wear helmets.

    But if your injury would have been less serious if you’d been wearing a helmet the amount of compensation could be reduced by 25% or so.

    But it’s up to the insurance company to prove the outcome would have been less serious. Not wearing a helmet doesn’t make a jot of difference if the injury is a broken arm!

    We understand the dramatic impact of an injury from a cycling accident.

    Our MD Paul Mulderrig is a keen cyclist.

    So he has his own stock of “war stories” and has acted for lots of injured cyclists.

    Our team have been dealing with cycling injury claims for over twenty five years.

    And we have dealt with cases from the most trivial injuries to the most serious.

    We promise to speak to you in plain English.

    One of our team will come to see you at home a time that’s convenient for you.

    We have held the Law Society’s LEXCEL quality mark since 2002.

    In our most recent survey 97% of our clients described our service as good or excellent.