You may be wanting to know more about how you could claim cycling accident compensation if you’ve injured while using your mountain bike. Cycling has become more popular in recent years, with the government having invested £2 billion in promoting alternative travel methods.
However, with the popularity of cycling increasing, there could be a greater risk of you suffering some form of injury. This guide will clarify under what instances you may be able to make a personal injury claim and the amount of compensation you could receive from such a claim.
Please read on to learn more about bicycle accident compensation.
Choose A Chapter
- What Is A Bicycle Accident And How Do They Happen?
- How Common Are Cycling Accidents?
- Is It Possible To Claim Cycling Accident Compensation?
- Personal Injury Compensation Awards
- Connect With No Win No Fee Solicitors For Help Claiming Cycling Accident Compensation
What Is A Bicycle Accident And How Do They Happen?
A cycle accident is an accident that involves your bicycle or electric bike colliding with another vehicle or section of the road or environment. The injuries that could occur from this kind of collision include:
- Fractures
- Sprains
- Strains
- Road rash. This is when part of your body scraps against the road or another vehicle.
- Dislocations
The most important aspect of receiving cycling accident compensation is proving that third party negligence led to your injury. Every road user has a duty of care in the form of the Highway Code. With that in mind, if a road user breaches their duty of care, leading to your injury, you may be able to receive compensation for the damage caused. Examples of incidents that could lead you to claim include:
- A driver not correctly considering their environment before turning into a lane. This could result in them colliding with you.
- A driver not allowing enough room for cyclists while manoeuvring.
- Another road user driving above the speed limit. Therefore, they could collide with you and cause serious injuries.
This helps answer questions like, “what is a cycling accident?” and “how do most cycling accidents happen?”
How Common Are Cycling Accidents?
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) provides road and safety guidance to help minimise accidents on the road. Furthermore, they also release statistics to help spread awareness about potential dangers. The latest statistics they have date back to 2019. Some of these statistics show the reported number of cyclists injured or killed in Great Britain in 2019.
As you can see, 100 cyclists were fatally wounded, while 4,333 were seriously injured and 12,451 were slightly injured. In total, that means that 16,884 cyclists were killed or injured by road traffic accidents. The statistics show how dangerous the road can be for cyclists. It only takes one accident for you to be seeking cycling accident compensation.
Is It Possible To Claim Cycling Accident Compensation?
You may be wanting to know more about making bicycle accident claims. As described above, the ability to claim compensation comes down to proving third party negligence. Therefore, making cycling accident claims revolves around proving the below three things:
- That the third party had a duty of care towards you
- Secondly, that their actions breached this duty.
- Finally, that this breach led to you suffering an injury.
The injury can either be physical, psychological or a multiple of both. Breach of duty involves proving that the other road user broke the standard of care outlined in the Highway Code. An example of this would be if a road user’s vehicle collides with your bike because they were driving recklessly.
Do you need evidence to make bicycle accident claims?
Furthermore, to prove this, evidence is crucial. It is an integral part of the bike accident claim procedure because you need to show that the other road user was accountable for your injury. Evidence you could use includes CCTV footage, witness statements, vehicle assessments and an independent medical examination of your injuries.
Reporting a cycling accident to the police can also be important as they can help with any immediate concerns about cordoning off the road if required. It also means that there’s an official report of the incident. This could be used as evidence in the bike accident claim.
Another crucial part of claiming cycling accident compensation is the personal injury claims time limit. In a standard case, you have three years from the date of the injury or from realising you’ve been injured to begin claims proceedings. This is outlined in The Limitation Act 1980.
Please click on this website to find out how to claim compensation for a cycling accident.
Personal Injury Compensation Awards
You may want to know more about the potential cycling accident compensation amounts you could receive from making a claim. The extent of your injury only partly determines the compensation you could receive. General damages compensation relates to this as, if your cycle accident compensation claim is successful, you will be paid for the physical and psychological damage caused by the injury.
The second potential head of claim is special damages. This relates to the financial losses suffered due to the injury. If you’ve suffered a lot of financial damage from it and you’re able to prove this, it could greatly increase the amount of compensation you could receive for your bike accident claim.
Examples of special damages you may be able to claim when seeking cycling accident compensation include:
- Loss of earnings
- Travel costs
- Private healthcare fees
- Loss of future earnings
- Costs of making adaptations to the home
However, evidence is crucial in claiming any compensation. For claiming special damages for cycling injury claims, evidence you would need includes receipts, invoices and bank statements.
Furthermore, it’s important to note that if you don’t receive compensation for general damages, you won’t receive compensation for the claim. This is because it means that the court has deemed that the third party in question wasn’t liable for your injuries.
How much compensation will I get for a bike accident?
The Judicial College analyses previous compensation amounts, relating them to the specific injury that caused them. By doing this, they’ve been able to build compensation brackets that could give a greater indication of what you could receive for general damages.
Below is a list of injuries and their respective compensation bracket. The Judicial College provided these figures. To learn more about claiming, please read this cycle accident claims information guide.
Type of Injury Amount of Compensation Description
Brain £85,150 to £140,870 Injuries in this bracket lead to moderate to modest deficit on an intellectual level, with the ability to work being greatly reduced if not completely gone and leading to some risk of developing epilepsy.
Psychiatric Damage Generally £17,900 to £51,460 Injuries in this bracket cause significant problems to things like the injured person's ability to work and causes difficulties maintaining relationships with families and friends.
Eye £22,230 to £36,960 Cases in this bracket lead to incomplete but serious loss of vision in one eye. However, the injury also doesn't cause significant risk of vision reduction or loss of vision to the remaining eye.
Chest £61,710 to £94,470 Cases in this bracket lead to traumatic injuries to the injured person's lung(s), chest and/or heart leading to physical disability and permanent damage
Reproductive System: Female £16,860 to £34,480 Injuries in this bracket cause infertility. However, this bracket is for women who already have children and there will be no medical complications caused by the injury.
Bowels £41,850 to £65,440 An injury in this bracket leads to a severe abdominal injury that causes functional impairment. This often leads to needing temporary colostomy.
Neck £12,900 to £23,460 Cases in this bracket cause wrenching-type injuries, soft tissue injuries and severe disc lesions leading to a severe limitation of movement.
Back £26,050 to £36,390 Injuries in this bracket cause less severe residual disabilities than some back injuries. Examples of injuries include traumatic spondylolisthesis leading to continuous pain and an intervertebral disc that has prolapsed and requires surgery.
Back Up to £2,300 This bracket includes less serious sprains, strains, soft tissue injuries and prolapsed discs where a full recovery is made within three months without surgery.
Shoulder £7,410 to £11,980 This bracket is for injuries such as a frozen shoulder which limits movement, causing discomfort that lasts for around two years.
Connect With No Win No Fee Solicitors For Help Claiming Cycling Accident Compensation
No Win No Fee claims can be an easier solution to claim from a financial perspective. This is because, by using a No Win No Fee solicitor, you only have to pay their legal fees if your claim is successful. They take a small, legally capped portion of your compensation to cover their legal fees. Therefore, you don’t have to pay these at any point during the claims process.
For free legal advice about bicycle accident compensation claims, you can contact Legal Expert. Their advisors are available 24/7, and they can tell you in just one phone call if you’re eligible to claim. Furthermore, they can put you through to specialised cycling solicitors who can work your case on a No Win No Fee basis. Contact them at a time that works for you using the information below.
- Call them on 0800 073 8804
- Email them using info@legalexpert.co.uk
- Contact them online through their website
- Use their Live Chat service to speak to someone instantly
More useful information can be found here
Please see below for links that may interest you.
Read this article for tips for cycling in traffic.
If you’re interested in cycling with others, find your local cycling group here.
Do you think you may have suffered broken or bruised ribs? If so, read this NHS guide for medical advice.
If you’ve been hit by a car while riding your bike, read this article on our website to learn more about whether you can sue.
Read this to know more about the five best cycling routes in Liverpool.
Want to know what the five best cycle routes in the UK are? If so, read this page.
Would you like to know more about claiming cycling accident compensation? If so, contact Legal Expert today, who will be able to provide you with free legal advice.