Cinnamon Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 My Husband was in a motorbike accident yesterday afternoon. He is not too badly hurt - 17 stitches in his thigh & a bit battered & bruised,but the bike is badly damaged, maybe a write off. It was an odd situation & I thought I would ask on here your opinions on who was at fault for the accident.......... He was going about 10mph (thank goodness no faster!), past some stationary traffic, as motorbikes do & as is,I think,legal. He was approaching the rear of a van in the traffic,& the van driver beckoned a car from a side road into the traffic in front of him. The car pulled out very quickly without checking up the road (the direction Brian was approaching), & Brian went over its bonnet The side road was on the same side of the road as the traffic, so the driver of the car could not easily see up the road past the van...... The van driver, when he saw that Brian & his bike were coming wound his window down to try & get her to pull back in........ What do you think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Hmmmmmm - that's a difficult one Sarah An unfortunate set of incidents? - so perhaps just a a genuine accident? Lucky he wasn't too badly hurt - I hope he is soon feeling better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Difficult one. Sorry to hear about it. I hope he recovers quickly. I dare say there will be witnesses who will be able to shed some light on the matter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheilaz Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Probably the motorbike. (sorry, & I'm so glad his injuries are recoverable). The van was stationary, & gestures don't count. The car pulled out believing their path was clear, since the van was stopped. Impossible to see the bike, (I've seen this before ) who was overtaking. Tricky one, & they'll all be quite shaken, thank goodness not worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Oh my goodness Sarah - poor Brian. Glad he is OK though, despite the damage. It could have been worse! Hard to say about fault, I would err on the side of the car driver sadly as, even though they were beckoned out, they still had a responsibility to check for themselves. I hate others telling me it's OK to pull out - I only ever trust my own judgement! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheilaz Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Mmmm, if it had been 2 lanes, then yes, the car. But if the car checked the van in that lane, how could they be expected to allow for a motorbike appearing down the side? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Your poor OH - 17 stitches is a lot . I hope he's not too sore . I tend to agree with Snowy. Is it not the car driver's responsibility to check the road for themselves and not rely on someone else waving them through? Tricky situation as someone is doing you a favour which then lands you (and someone else) in trouble . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinnamon Posted September 16, 2008 Author Share Posted September 16, 2008 Just found out that its actually not allowed to wave people out onto a road...................... The only witness we have are the drivers of the vehicles involved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lisa33 Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 How awful. What a relief that he wasn't too badly injured but even so you must have been worried sick. Hope he recovers quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlo Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Just PMd you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susiepoos Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 I would have thought that the car was at fault - I would never move out from a junction on the say so of another driver - it is your responsibility to make sure that your exit is clear - even if she did proceed you would do it slowly and carefully until you could clearly see around the van. As far as the bike is concerned I don't think he was at fault but I'm sure someone on here with a police background maybe able to advise. Hope he's feeling better soon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cate in NZ Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 This has just started a discussion here, not an easy one and horrible for all concerned, thank goodness no one was more seriously injured. Poor Brian sounds like he's going to be quite sore for a few days though . The Police are likely to investigate because it's an injury accident, so no doubt you'll get some answers, although it's unlikely to be clear cut enough for a prosecution...we think anyway. Probably, in the wrong is the car driver. The only ones legally able to direct traffic are the Police (& PCSO's & some traffic wardens ) and vehicles should follow their directions. However the van driver was not in a position to direct traffic and quite clearly did not have a good enough view of the road to do so. Therefore, difficult though it was for the driver she should not have followed his directions without being able to see the road clearly for herself...she is responsible for the manouevres she makes.....and she should "think bike" Tough one though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinnamon Posted September 16, 2008 Author Share Posted September 16, 2008 Kate,the police were called but said that they only came onto the scene of an accident if an ambulance was required, which thankfully it was not. I would have been much happier if the Police had come,just to look at the situation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Kate,the police were called but said that they only came onto the scene of an accident if an ambulance was required, which thankfully it was not. I would have been much happier if the Police had come,just to look at the situation they will turn out if the situation is unsure/contentious; I had something similar over 10 years ago when a bloke rammed me and tried to drive off. I stood in front of his car to stop him moving off and called the police. They took pictures, measurements and drew diagrams, which were very helpful in my claim against him, which he was contesting. It was a busy roundabout, but no-one offered to stop and help How is OH this morning? Stiff and achey I'll bet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 I would say that it is definitely the car's fault. The car pulled out from a side road into the path of a moving vehicle. Therefore it was wrong (although I can see it was an unfortunate accident). The van has confused the issue, but as someone said earlier it is always the driver's responsibility to make sure that his/her manoevres are safe. I hope Brian feels better soon. thank goodness he wasn't going faster and thank goodness the accident wasn't worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tina C Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Although I would like to say its the car driver's fault I would say the best result you will get is 50-50. Filtering is a bit of a grey area I believe and should only be one very cautiously (I know Brian was being cautious but ins co will say not cautious enough ) You both have my sympathy - from one whose partner has also been over the front of a car because of a driver not looking what she was doing - nearly three years on he is still suffering. In his case it was 50-50. She turned up at the hospital hours afterwards - as Mike was waiting for super-strength painkillers and barely able to stand having been carted off by ambulance - complaining of a bit of a headache. Then she proceeded to tell the whole waiting room that it was her 7th accident....and she was very young (now I don't think the young are necessaily bad drivers but this one clearly was!) As an aside Mike has since become an advanced motorcyclist and says it has helped him anticipate more and ride more defensively. He has been a biker for over 20 years and is very experienced but says it was well worth getting more training. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WitchHazel Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Sorry to hear about this. Motorbike accidents are always so horrible to think about because he rider is so vulnerable. I don't think that yor husband is to blame, and tbh I wouldn't worry to much about whether it is the car or the van's fault. You should just put in your claim with your insurance company, stating all the facts clearly. They will have the experience to sort it out for you. I hope it gets sorted out soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaP Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Hope your OH isn't feeling too bad this morning. My husband rides too (and my eldest son now too) and has had similar accidents. The car driver is at fault in my opinion - usually classed as undue care/attention, or however they word it now Glad for you both he is not too badly injured, always much better when the bike is worse off - they can be replaced Lisa P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
One Man Banned Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Oh Dear, Glad that Brian is not too seriously hurt and that he recovers quickly It sounds like he was doing all he could to be cautious Rule 88 Manoeuvring. You should be aware of what is behind and to the sides before manoeuvring. Look behind you; use mirrors if they are fitted. When in traffic queues look out for pedestrians crossing between vehicles and vehicles emerging from junctions or changing lanes. Position yourself so that drivers in front can see you in their mirrors. Additionally, when filtering in slow-moving traffic, take care and keep your speed low. I would say it was the car drivers fault also as you should never accept a gesture or flash of headlights as a signal that it is save to proceed/carry out your manoeuvre - the driver or rider is responsible for checking that it is safe to do so Hopefully it will be all sorted out by the insurance companies tho - just let them have the facts and wrangle it out between them - that's what you pay them for A xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HENthusiastic Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Id go with car driver too. Your hubby was driving along a road when a car came out of a side turning and caused a crash. The van's gesturing is neither here nor there in terms of the law. Hope hes not in too much pain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola H Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Poor Brian I hope he feels better soon........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scramble Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 I hope your OH is feeling better. What a horrible thing to happen. I hate car accidents, my mum was in one a year ago, though it doesn't feel like it. My mum was going to pick my sister up from choir and was getting ready to pull out of the drive way and our next door neighbour was driving up the road. She flashed my mum, , and the road was clear so she pulled out. behind the neighboiur was a van and another car that had just pulled out of another driveway. she over took the van and my neighbours car, who was indicting so could have crashed into her, and slammed into the side of my mum's car and made it face completly the opposite direction. The bumper was smashed in and one back wheel was nearly off. My mum had a bad cut on the back of her head hitting the head seat too hard. And we live on a 30 mph road. she did more than that, I saw the whole thing out of the window. She didn't damage her car, but my mum;s was a write off, and we were nearly at the end of a 3 year bank loan for it. The whole thing is still going on as the lady who crashed into my mum refuses to accept it as her fault as she thought the van and my neighbours car were parked. There going to court soon. I hope you don't have too tough a time sorting everything out, I hate to say it but accidents are always made by people signalling to others. big hugs, i know how hard these things can be. x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..lay a little egg for me Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 Oh my goodness Sarah - poor Brian. Glad he is OK though, despite the damage. It could have been worse! Hard to say about fault, I would err on the side of the car driver sadly as, even though they were beckoned out, they still had a responsibility to check for themselves. I hate others telling me it's OK to pull out - I only ever trust my own judgement! Yes, I agree with Snowy and the others who consider the car driver is at fault. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted September 16, 2008 Share Posted September 16, 2008 I NEVER flash people to say 'come on ...' - I've seen too many accidents/near misses from this. I will make eye-contact with the other driver and make a hand gesture if, for example, I'm letting someone in from a side road, but flashing headlights can so easily be seen by someone else for whom they were not intended. Correction - I'll flash on the motorway, for example where a lorry wants to pull out into the lane I'm in - but that's all. I'd say it was the driver's fault, because if you're pulling into a side road you have to make appropriate observations, and it's an obvious risk that if there is a line of stationary traffic then there may be a bike overtaking it. However no doubt your insurers will advise. There's a salutary warning for all of us here, not to rely on other people waving us out! I do hope your OH is recovering, could have been much worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinnamon Posted September 16, 2008 Author Share Posted September 16, 2008 Thanks all, you have been very kind He is very stiff & sore, & it looks like he will have some pretty spectacular bruises in a couple of days. The insurance people seem to think its the cars fault, so we will have to see what happens there. The bike is going off to be assesed later today, & he is getting a loan one (which I am VERY uncertain about him riding) Never been a big fan of bikes, & I hate it when he is out on his, as they are so vunerable. Luckily his bike was a big solid thing with bumpers all over it, which happily saved his legs from any worse damage than they got. Men Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
