son hit by a cyclist. Can i claim for him?

MEGAN115_2

My son, who was 13 at the time, was crossing over the road to coem home from school when he was hit by a cyclist. The cyclist broke my sons leg and shattered his growth plate in his knee which needed surgery. The cyclist was not insured and is now claiming off my house insurance for his bike and personal injury. Apparently the reserve price is £10,000. Police say it was just an accident and thats that. Can anyone give me advice on how to claim for my sons injuries. And i want to understand as to why he can ride around with no insurance for a £4,500 cycle and then cause serious damage to a young boy and then have the cheek to claim silly amounts of money from myself. Please help!!!!

Horace

Is the cyclist claiming that the accident was the fault of your son stepping into the road? Were there any witnesses etc. etc. Don't know what to suggest really other than perhaps speaking to one of those no win no fee solicitors that specialise in personal injury (they claim their fees from the person who pays out e.g. the cyclist). £4500 for a bike seems a bit excessive though.

Good luck.

jonathon

the big question is who's fault was the accident ? did your son just step in front of the bike without looking in which case i would claim of you as well.if you think it was the bikers fault sue him.

WestonDave

The problem is in any "accident" someone is to blame (maybe both parties).

To remove the emotiveness from this let me explain it this way. If I cross a road and get hit by a car and injured one of two things must have happened. Either I crossed the road without checking I could get across before the car came, or the car appeared round a corner at a ridiculous speed and I couldn't have got out of the way in time. In the first instance, no matter how badly injured I was, I would have no claim against anyone (even the car driver) since the accident was my own fault - whether or not the car driver had insurance or was driving a £40k Ferrari would be immaterial.

If you think that your son was properly crossing the road and was not in any way at fault for the accident then presumably a statement to that effect will be sought by your household insurers to contest the claim against them, plus if you consult a specialist personal injury solicitor they will most likely offer you a free initial interview to establish whether you have a case, and if so more than likely take it on a no win no fee basis. I would advise you to find a local solictor who is a member of the Law Society Personal Injury panel (check lawsociety.org.uk) rather than one of the flashier advertised claims farms. You also need to make a claim within 6 years of the accident although if he was below 18 you have 6 years from when he becomes 18 I think.

jonathon

"I would have no claim against anyone (even the car driver) since the accident was my own fault "

no but he would have a claim against you.

vikingaero

There are plenty of road cyclists that have very expensive machines £5k+. Was the cyclist one of the lycra wearing brigade? I am surprised that he was uninsured through a cycling club for third party. Most road cyclists take insurance seriously. Some people are covered under some household policies for public liability.

Generally on most roads, unless there are specific crossing points such as a zebra crossing or pelican crossing etc, the vehicle/horse/cyclist has right of way over the pedestrian crossing. If your son did indeed cross without looking or between parked cars then he could be held liable. If the cyclist wishes to claim against you (as parent/guardian) or your son then he should be covered by your own household public liability cover (assuming you have house insurance).

Let us know more details to see if we can help further.

debsy42

[FONT=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]Time Limits For Claiming Compensation.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]If you have had an accident, you must bring a claim within 3 years of the accident or the court has the power to refuse to allow you to claim for your injury. There are however exceptions which are: [/FONT]

1. [FONT=Arial, Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif]If you were under the age of 18, in the UK, when the accident occurred, the three year time limit applies from your 18th birthday. In Scotland it is from your 16th birthday.[/FONT]

taken from here

lisyloo

There is no obligation on anyone to have insurance for their own possessions.
Even if the cyclist has insurance he may still prefer to claim off you if he thinks your son is to blame as he'll suffer and excess and increased premiums by making a claim.

The cyclist may genuinely feel your son is to blame or it might be a cynical claim where he's hoping an insurance company will pay out to avoid high court costs, either way you need legal advice.

You need to contact your househould insurance adn ask for their advice.
You may have free legal cover but if not then speak to them anyway because you may very well want to direct a 3rd party liability claim to them.

It's very difficult to say who is to blame from the details given.
If it's wasn't at a pedestrian crossing and just an orindary road then the cyclist would have right of way over your son but that doesn't mean that the cyclist has no duty of car especially near school etc.

Get legal advice and if you think the cyclist is to blame in any way (only if partly) then put in a counter-claim (the insurance company will want to do this anyway).

asea

What has the cyclist put in the claim? Have your insurance people told you?

Altarf

vikingaero wrote: »

Generally on most roads, unless there are specific crossing points such as a zebra crossing or pelican crossing etc, the vehicle/horse/cyclist has right of way over the pedestrian crossing.

Pedestrians have priority at road junctions (even if it is not a zebra or pelican crossing) if they have started to cross, although the majority of motorists (or cyclists) don't seem to be aware of this. - Highway Code rule 170 and rule 206

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Highwaycode/DG_070332
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Highwaycode/DG_069858

Biggles

Altarf wrote: »

Pedestrians have priority at road junctions (even if it is not a zebra or pelican crossing) if they have started to cross, although the majority of motorists (or cyclists) don't seem to be aware of this. - Highway Code rule 170 and rule 206

Not exactly. That right of way only applies where a motorist/cyclist turns into a road where a pedestrian is already crossing. It's not a blanket right of way at road junctions.