Roadworks damaged my tyre and wheel

AdrianC

Chucky1234 wrote: »

I'd say I was travelling about 20-25mph.

I'm not even fully sure if I was behind a car at the time but I know I didn't have time to react after seeing the drain exposed otherwise I would've avoided it - I will have to review the dashcam footage.

How far away would you say you can see an exposed drain cover?
At 20mph, you are covering 8m each second.

Remember, the bare minimum driving eyesight standard is being able to read a number plate from 20m. Drain covers are about ten times the size of numberplate characters.

If there's something in your way that you need to go round, but oncoming traffic won't let you, then you stop, indicate, and wait for a gap in the oncoming traffic. It doesn't matter if it's a raised drain cover, a parked truck, or an procession of baby ducks.

Chucky1234 wrote: »

Bad news guys - I don't think my dashcam is working properly and it hasn't recorded the relevant part of the journey - annoying!

How terribly... inconvenient.

Chucky1234

Maybe I described it badly. The drain was like a small square sticking up out the ground - probably not much larger than a square beer mat.

With regards to the signs, I don't recall seeing any but there may be some - I'll go back to the scene after work and get some pictures.

Not sure why a poster is trying to tell me how to drive - I know how to go round something blocking my path...

Aylesbury_Duck

Chucky1234 wrote: »

Not sure why a poster is trying to tell me how to drive - I know how to go round something blocking my path...

How did you sustain the damage then?

My short question is this - do the council or whoever was doing the roadworks have a duty of care to ensure the road is roadworthy at all times? There are no signs up or anything. Is it worth writing to the council about this? Am I likely to get anything back? Or should I just write it off?

Yes, the council do have a duty of care to ensure the road is roadworthy, which is presumably why they're carrying out the roadworks. I'd be surprised if there weren't signs, there are usually signed tarmac ramps alerting you to the drop in surface level and a "raised ironworks" sign on such works, but your pictures will capture those if they're still working on it this evening so post them on here and we can judge if the road was adequately signed.

the road should never have been opened in the condition it was in imo

If this road was closed, you'd probably not be best pleased at the congestion on your usual route. You said yourself you took a detour to avoid traffic on your normal route.

Chucky1234

I can't say for definite whether there were signs up at the moment - I know I said in my OP that there weren't but as it stands I'm not sure so I will update it later (with pictures).

neilmcl

Chucky1234 wrote: »

I can't say for definite whether there were signs up at the moment - I know I said in my OP that there weren't but as it stands I'm not sure so I will update it later (with pictures).

I believe it's a statutory requirement to have roadworks signs up whenever works is being done, particularly if the road is being resurfaced.

I agree that in certain circumstances it can be hard to avoid such objects as potholes etc. I had an incident myself years back in motorway roadworks where a contraflow took us down the middle of 2 lanes and a large pothole opened up where they removed one of the cats eyes and hadn't filled it properly. I didn't have time to avoid it at 50 mph nor should I have been expecting it therefore the contractor's insurer paid up for a new wheel and tyre but in your case I'd say raised iron work etc should've been expected and caution should have been exercised.

AdrianC

Chucky1234 wrote: »

Maybe I described it badly. The drain was like a small square sticking up out the ground - probably not much larger than a square beer mat.

So rather than a drain cover, a stopcock cover? Likely to be around 150 x 150, or twice the size of the characters on a number plate?

Chucky1234 wrote: »

I can't say for definite whether there were signs up at the moment - I know I said in my OP that there weren't but as it stands I'm not sure so I will update it later (with pictures).

Whether there were signs or not, it was blindingly apparent that the road was undergoing work, right? And that there might be hazards not normally present as a direct result of that?

Chucky1234

The more I thought about it the more I realised there probably was signs there, and there was.

http://imgur.com/a/ltAaq < Shows the signs on the approach to the bit which damaged my wheel. The third sign says 'raised manhole covers' if you can't see from the image. The 4th says Site Entrance.

http://imgur.com/a/TBgEF < This image is a close up of what did the damage. It was a pothole followed immediately by a stopcock cover.

http://imgur.com/a/JRmo1 < This shows the road and is a similar view to what I would've seen in my car while I was driving.

Just to answer some queries and clarify some points.

I did slow down on the approach to the obvious road resurfacing, I was going between 20-25mph.

It weren't a case of me not seeing this particular stopcock, I did see it - however on this stretch of road while they're resurfacing there are a lot of various raised draincovers, raised surfaces, potholes, raised stopcocks, uneven/bumpy ground that the only way to get past them realistically is to just slow your speed, you'd be swerving all over the road trying to dodge every single one.

As I was driving over it, I didn't realise it was quite so severe, round here there are quite a few raised stopcocks like that and usually if you're going a sensible speed, you're okay.

I watched this particular stopcock for about 2 minutes while I was taking pictures and 75% of cars all drove straight over it, most of them with a loud bang, I very much doubt I am the only person this has happened to.

Its also worth noting this stopcock is just over a bridge in the road, under a motorway bridge - so you can only see it after you've cleared the bridge in the road, which don't give you much time to react really.

The only reason I posted on here was to see if people think I may have a claim against the council, I don't need to be told 'you should've stopped and waited for traffic on the opposite side of the road to clear before going round it'

Hindsight is a wonderful thing - if I had stopped dead just after going over that bridge and the car behind me went into the back of me and I posted about that, I'm certain some posters would've said you should've just slowed down and drove over it.

Once again thanks for all your help and I want to know, in the circumstances, is it worth writing to the council?

AdrianC

Chucky1234 wrote: »

The more I thought about it the more I realised there probably was signs there, and there was.

So there y'go.

< Shows the signs on the approach to the bit which damaged my wheel. The third sign says 'raised manhole covers' if you can't see from the image. The 4th says Site Entrance.


< This image is a close up of what did the damage. It was a pothole followed immediately by a stopcock cover.


< This shows the road and is a similar view to what I would've seen in my car while I was driving.

I watched this particular stopcock for about 2 minutes while I was taking pictures and 75% of cars all drove straight over it, most of them with a loud bang, I very much doubt I am the only person this has happened to.

And how many of those cars stopped with a !!!!!!ed wheel and tyre?

The only reason I posted on here was to see if people think I may have a claim against the council, I don't need to be told 'you should've stopped and waited for traffic on the opposite side of the road to clear before going round it'

OK, great. So you already knew where you went wrong.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing - if I had stopped dead just after going over that bridge and the car behind me went into the back of me

Hyperbole much?

Once again thanks for all your help and I want to know, in the circumstances, is it worth writing to the council?

No. You were warned. Work was ongoing. Would you rather they'd closed the road completely for the duration of the work?

neilmcl

Chucky1234 wrote: »

Once again thanks for all your help and I want to know, in the circumstances, is it worth writing to the council?

By all means write to the council, nothing ventured and all that but don't be surprised if you get nowhere with any claim. At the end of the day the works were adequately signposted and it was up to you take all due care, even if that meant slowing right down to walking pace and negotiating the obstructions.

Aylesbury_Duck

Thanks for posting the photos, OP.

I don't think it's worth writing to the council. Plenty of warning signage and you elected to use the route to avoid traffic on your usual route. Had this road been closed for the work, I assume the traffic would have been even heavier on your usual route. As for the other drivers, either there were loads of damaged wheels and tyres or you struck the cover at a slightly higher speed or at a different angle or perhaps your tyres weren't at quite the same pressure as others' tyres. Could be anything really, but I doubt the council will accept any liability.