Bob was riding his bike to a dentist
appointment in Dalston on a Friday morning in March 2012. Knowing his route would be busy, he
opted to take the back streets as they would be quieter.
While cycling about 10
miles an hour, a driver suddenly opened a parked car door on his left hand side
just as he was passing. His bike collided with the open door and the top edge
of the door cut into his left arm and shoulder. Thrown to the ground by the
collision, he was fortunately able to get up quickly and remove himself from oncoming traffic.
Bob was taken to hospital and the laceration on his left
arm was glued and dressed to stop the bleeding. He developed
bruising to his left arm which lasted for several weeks, and experienced
moderate pain and stiffness in his left knee and shoulder, which slowly
improved but continued to cause him intermittent problems.
The injuries while
luckily fairly minor had detrimental effects on his social life. He began to
experience discomfort when riding his bike and his ability to go walking was restricted, which clearly affected his ability to travel.
Fortunately this improved quickly, however he was unable to continue
playing football and this has still not improved since his accident.
Liability in this case was clear:
the driver had acted negligently by opening his door without looking to check
that it was safe to do so. Since he had come to the aid of our client and given
his details, settling compensation through his insurers was fairly simple. Our solicitors
were able to recover £2,265 for our client, along with the costs of his
physiotherapy and our legal costs. This matter was handled with speed and
skill, and Bob received his compensation just 4 months
after the accident, allowing him to focus on his recovery.
| High Vis tops will reduce risk of "dooring" |
TIPS
When cycling, it is
important to be wary of both moving and parked vehicles and drivers should take
the same care. This accident took place on a bright and sunny day, however
since winter is coming along with its gloomy light and shorter days, wearing
bright and reflective clothing- as recommended in the Highway Code- will improve your chances of being seen on the
road and prevent “dooring” accidents occurring. Also always try and keep a safe distance from parked cars as you pass: easier said than done in London's crowded streets.
The rider in the photo is extremely poorly positioned for her safety. Not only is she well within range of the doors of parked cars but, even worse, she is passing the nearside of a lorry's cab, where it is hard for the driver to see her. In these circumstances, the colour of her clothing is almost neither here nor there.
ReplyDeleteGood road positioning, including staying out of the 'door zone', is a skill you must acquire if you want to enjoy your cycling and avoid collisions.
Professional one-to-one cycle training is available free or at a heavily subsidised rate in most London boroughs, including Hackney. Everyone can benefit from a training session, whether they're new to cycling or have been at it for years.
Details of Hackney's cycle training offer is here: http://www.hackney.gov.uk/ct-fam-ind.htm
On closer examination of the photo, given the presence of a bus in the line of motors to the rider's left it looks as if she is actually passing between two queues of motors rather than to the right of parked vehicles. So it's not such a good illustration of the typical dooring situation. Nevertheless, she is woefully badly located vis-a-vis the lorry. The best advice is almost always to hang back.
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