Hit a bicycle with my car - what do i do??

alidai

Hi,

This morning as i was pulling out onto an A road I hit a cyclist with the front of my car, knocking him off his bike in the process. I stopped and helped him up, he had a few scrapes and cuts on his arm and leg but was otherwise ok.

His bike however was not in a good condition, although i was only going at around 20mph both of his wheels were bent and there may be other damage (it was a road bike so very light and looked possibly quite expensive).

I waited for a while, gave him my details (including him taking a picture of my car in case the details i gave were false), and then left him when we agreed he was ok.

The accident was 100% my fault, i looked out of the junction, and then back to see if there were any cars coming, then continued to exit the junction. I have no idea how i didn't see him, but i didn't at all, and am quite worried at how that was possible. I clearly wasn't paying enough attention.

What i want to know is what do i do now? - There is little to no damage to my car (that i can visible see anyway), but do i need to phone my insurance company to let them know i'll be making a claim? Do i need to make a claim? Or do i need to tell them that he'll be claiming and this is what's happened??

I have never claimed on insurance before so have no idea of the process.

Thanks

J

Mr_K

yes you need to tell your insurance, and probably the police too as you hit someone. If the cyclist was careful enough to take details then you can bet there's a claim coming.

Take a deep breath, calm down and let the insurance deal with it, that's what you pay them for. Nobody was hurt and life goes on.

Quentin

You do need to inform your insurer.

You only need to make a claim if you want your own damage repaired.

It is up to the third party to pursue a claim if he wants to.

Pass on any correspondence you get from the third party unanswered to your insurer to deal with.

If there is a claim against you and you are considered liable then your insurer will deal with it at no cost to you.

If unprotected, then your NCD will be impacted, but if the only claim is from the third party (ie you don't claim for your own damage) there will be no excess to pay.

alidai

thanks both of you for your responses - i will call the insurers ASAP this morning and inform them.

I'm pretty sure there will be a claim against me as the bike seemed expensive and the wheels were pretty messed up. The guy seemed ok though, and was saying how he was just glad he was alright as his friend had just come out of hospital after 10 weeks in there for a cycling accident.

Mr_K

The cost of the bike while be miniscule compared to a personal injury claim if he makes one. However that's your insurances problem, not yours.

spacey2012

If you fail to inform the police of the collision and the cyclist does you will be in very hot water indeed .
You need to call both Insurance and the police.

comeandgo

Yes, I was a bit worried for the OP by the fact that the police had not been informed.

Mr_K

You've got 24 hours to contact the police so don't panic. They probably won't do much apart from check you're insured/taxed, and record the incident.

spacey2012

The other Urban Myth is cyclists dont have any insurance, if they are enthusiasts many are in clubs or societies that have insurance cover as part of the membership package.
So prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
Worst case is he decides he now has whiplash and backache covered by shock and hits in a huge claim.

Quentin

Mr_K wrote: »

You've got 24 hours to contact the police so don't panic......

No.

You must contact the police (if it's a reportable RTA, which this one is) ASAP.

Velcro_Hotdog

Why does the OP need to call the police?