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Old June 22nd 19, 01:39 PM posted to uk.rec.cycling
jnugent
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Posts: 11,574
Default So what about his much-vaunted household contents insurance?

On 22/06/2019 12:55, TMS320 wrote:
On 22/06/2019 01:00, JNugent wrote:
To say nothing of his fridge-freezer policy?


https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/21/cyclist-crashed-into-woman-mobile-phone-pay-compensation-london


QUOTE:
Hazeldean [the cyclist who ran down a pedestrian] ... said he was
“reeling” from a verdict that would leave him bankrupt. In a statement
he said: “I am of course deeply disappointed with the outcome … and
concerned by the precedent that it might set for other cyclists.
ENDQUOTE

But surely any court decision which reinforces and emphasises the need
for caution and restraint is good for society in general?


Yes, drivers should not feel smug when they kill or injure 5800
pedestrians a year.


Who is "they"?

I have never killed or injured anyone. Perhaps you have and are
extrapolating (incorrectly) to the population level.

This was a civil case, not a criminal one.


Full marks.

But had anyone said different?

It was
not from going through a red light, riding on the pavement, lack of
front brake, "riding furiously" or any other sin that every cyclist is
supposed to be guilty of. He attempted to avoid but failed.


The method of "avoidance" he chose was inappropriate. Blasting on an
air-horn doesn't make a collision less likely or less dangerous. Braking
hard does.

Merely changing direction without changing speed (downward) is fraught
with risk because the cyclist cannot know what the reaction of the
victim will be. The cyclist assumed that the pedestrian would not try to
get out of the way. He was wrong in that and wrong in not attempting to
avoid her by simply stopping.

But there is another lesson for cyclists, because they can be injured
and killed by pedestrians. It is reported that he was also injured in
the collision but he decided not counter claim against the woman or seek
legal advice. There is no point echoing Peter Parry's post about this.


Yes, I did read it.

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