Side swiped by foreign lorry driver

Willyoulearn

My brother drives for North West Ambulance service, transferring patients in his own car, to various hospital appointments in the North West. He has the necessary insurance for this.

Last year he was side swiped by a foreign lorry driver on the motorway. Apparently the lorry hit him twice (according to his passenger) and after spinning out of control, the car ended up facing the wrong way on top of the crash barrier alongside the hard shoulder. The police were called and duly arrived, and he has all the necessary details, registration number, insurance details etc. There is no CCTV footage as the cameras were not working.

Fortunately he was not injured, nor was his passenger, the car however was a write off.

The problem is this, his insurance company has not managed to recover any monies from the lorry driver and don't seem too bothered about trying, his insurance has gone up considerably and he has had to pay an excess. On my advice he contacted the financial ombudsman, but they have not been much help.

It would seem it is virtually impossible to recover any monies from these foreign lorry drivers even if they are insured. Looking on the internet it seems this is happening all the time and in some instances the accidents are fatal. He is fortunate to be in a position to buy another car without waiting for the insurance to pay and just wants an easy life with no hassle, but it does seem very unfair. What is the point in these foreign drivers having insurance to drive on our roads if, once they are back home there is no recourse.

Does anyone have any advice or experience in these matters.

Jack_Regan

The point of them having insurance is to comply with the law.

Have you tried the mib?

Iceweasel

If the truck was from another EU country there should be absolutely no problem at all. Just the same as with a UK registered and insured truck.

It's your brother's insurance company that are falling short of the mark here.

If it was from outside the EU then it's a little more complicated, and can take longer - but as Jack R says that is what the Motor Insurers Bureaux is for.

Ratboy

If the people involved were travelling along a motorway, HOW did a vehicle get 'sideswiped' ?

To achieve that, the vehicle would have to be sideways on, and already involved in their own accident?

That's my understanding of sideswiped. So the person involved caused the accident, and was subsequentially hit after the accident they caused? So caused damage to other people, and now wants recompense?

Willyoulearn

When I say side swiped, maybe I am using the wrong term, but this seems to be how they refer to these incidents. Because these drivers are driving left hand drive vehicles, they cannot see if it is clear to move into the lane to the right and a collision occurs.

It was a driver from the EU so you would think it would be straight forward to pursue, but it seems that is not the case. Once they are back home, they start claiming the incident was 50/50. Perhaps I could try this next time I crash into someone!

Johnmcl7

Ratboy wrote: »

If the people involved were travelling along a motorway, HOW did a vehicle get 'sideswiped' ?

To achieve that, the vehicle would have to be sideways on, and already involved in their own accident?

That's my understanding of sideswiped. So the person involved caused the accident, and was subsequentially hit after the accident they caused? So caused damage to other people, and now wants recompense?

No, a sideswipe can occur when two vehicles are travelling in adjacent lanes and one of them moves into the occupied lane sending the other spinning. It can particularly be an issue with foreign truck drivers when a car is sitting right alongside the right hand side of the cab which is difficult for the truck driver to see as they're sitting on the other side of the cab and mirrors are mostly pointing backwards. So if they then move to the right and don't see the car they will side swipe it and with the greater mass of the truck, send the smaller car spinning.

John

Ratboy

Willyoulearn wrote: »

When I say side swiped, maybe I am using the wrong term, but this seems to be how they refer to these incidents. Because these drivers are driving left hand drive vehicles, they cannot see if it is clear to move into the lane to the right and a collision occurs.

It was a driver from the EU so you would think it would be straight forward to pursue, but it seems that is not the case. Once they are back home, they start claiming the incident was 50/50. Perhaps I could try this next time I crash into someone!

So, rather than speculate; can you describe the incident properly?

Everybody knows the issue of foreign lorries, and their lack of vision. I suffered the same when driving in Europe, hard to take over slow moving vehicles.

But, as we are all EU now; everything is in sync!

Nope! I got many speeding tickets while driving thru France, on my Euro tour. The cameras frashing. Never heard a bean. Why? Too much admin.

Why should someone contact someone in a foreign language over a triffling affair? too much hassle?

Jamie_Carter

Johnmcl7 wrote: »

No, a sideswipe can occur when two vehicles are travelling in adjacent lanes and one of them moves into the occupied lane sending the other spinning. It can particularly be an issue with foreign truck drivers when a car is sitting right alongside the right hand side of the cab which is difficult for the truck driver to see as they're sitting on the other side of the cab and mirrors are mostly pointing backwards. So if they then move to the right and don't see the car they will side swipe it and with the greater mass of the truck, send the smaller car spinning.

John

I have driven a number of HGVs, and on the passenger side of the vehicle there has always been 4 mirrors. 2 that cover the length of the vehicle from the cab backwards, 1 that points downwards to see anything alongside the cab, and 1 on the front corner so that you can see anything at that corner of the vehicle. On the drivers side there should be 2 covering the length of the vehicle from the cab backwards. If anything is close to the cab on the drivers side, then the driver should be able to see it by turning his head and looking down. I'm fairly sure that all these mirrors are required by EEC law. The smaller mirror on the drivers side is a pain though, as on a Scania it causes a bad blind spot when looking for vehicles coming from the right on a roundabout.

So the driver should have no excuses for sideswiping another vehicle.

Jamie_Carter

Ratboy wrote: »

So, rather than speculate; can you describe the incident properly?

Everybody knows the issue of foreign lorries, and their lack of vision. I suffered the same when driving in Europe, hard to take over slow moving vehicles.

But, as we are all EU now; everything is in sync!

Nope! I got many speeding tickets while driving thru France, on my Euro tour. The cameras frashing. Never heard a bean. Why? Too much admin.

Why should someone contact someone in a foreign language over a triffling affair? too much hassle?

The OP did describe it properly.

I think you are probably right about them not bothering due to admin though.

banger9365

Jamie_Carter wrote: »

I have driven a number of HGVs, and on the passenger side of the vehicle there has always been 4 mirrors. 2 that cover the length of the vehicle from the cab backwards, 1 that points downwards to see anything alongside the cab, and 1 on the front corner so that you can see anything at that corner of the vehicle. On the drivers side there should be 2 covering the length of the vehicle from the cab backwards. If anything is close to the cab on the drivers side, then the driver should be able to see it by turning his head and looking down. I'm fairly sure that all these mirrors are required by EEC law. The smaller mirror on the drivers side is a pain though, as on a Scania it causes a bad blind spot when looking for vehicles coming from the right on a roundabout.

So the driver should have no excuses for sideswiping another vehicle.

"I have driven a number of HGVs"then you should know the blind side is near impossible to see a car near the cab even with the mirrors

Jamie_Carter

banger9365 wrote: »

"I have driven a number of HGVs"then you should know the blind side is near impossible to see a car near the cab even with the mirrors

If your mirrors are properly adjusted there should be little or no blind spot. But even if there were then you should be aware of the traffic all around you. Rather than just waiting until you are about to change lanes, and then check your mirrors. This is the difference between a good and a bad driver.