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On my way into work this morning I was run into by a bus from behind and sent flying across the road. The bus driver explained that he didn't have to give his name or insurance details, that he had CCTV footage and 30 witnesses who would say it was all my fault, that I had a "shirty" attitude and that he would report me to the police for assault since I had borrowed his pen without asking. I asked another cyclist if he would give me his name as a witness but he refused.
What kind of trouble am I in? Do I need legal advice?
Update 2008-11-19: reported it to the police. Gave an interview to PC Mark Deal, who said that he'd ask Stagecoach for the video and get back to me.
2008-11-20: wrote to Stagecoach myself asking for the video (under the Data Protection Act), just in case the police have other things to do.
2008-12-02: no reply from Stagecoach to my DPA request. PC Deal asked me to write a statement. Wrote one.
2008-12-21: no reply from Stagecoach. PC Deal came round to get me to sign (his rewording of) my statement. He said that someone from the Collision Investigation Unit in Huntingdon will be in touch.
2008-12-31: the Collision Investigation Unit wrote to say that they have identified the bus driver as Nigel Anthony Newton of 39 Summerling, Bluntisham, PE28 3XT, and that the police have decided to take no further action.
November 19 2008, 11:18:27 UTC 3 years ago
November 19 2008, 11:27:37 UTC 3 years ago
November 19 2008, 11:35:25 UTC 3 years ago Edited: November 19 2008, 11:38:03 UTC
ETA: Are you sure there's nothing more serious? Both times I was hit by cars, I didn't realise the extent of the damage to me/the bike till after I'd got home.
November 19 2008, 11:45:28 UTC 3 years ago
If any obstacle is placed in the way of this being properly investigated, ask to speak to Inspector Kerridge at Parkside, and indicate to him that you are greatly concerned that this incident may not be treated as seriously as it needs to be.
email me @ lj, and I'll give you more details so you can tell him that I suggested you do this, based on his assurances given in the meeting that I and various others had with him a month ago.
November 19 2008, 11:28:51 UTC 3 years ago
November 19 2008, 11:29:12 UTC 3 years ago
November 19 2008, 11:33:26 UTC 3 years ago
But first things first:
- are you physically hurt?
- did you bang your head?
- how's your bike?
- did the police attend?
- what CCTV footage?
- how many witnesses do you suppose there were?
- were there any other vehicles involved?
- where was it? what time? what were conditions like? light? wet?
- did you get his name and/or insurance details?
- did you get the bus number and company?
I advise a cup of tea, followed by talking to the police (if they didn't attend), followed by a telephone complaint to the bus company. They know who the bus driver was. If there is any injury or damage (e.g. to your bike) then you could say you want compensation and will sue for it if necessary. Really stir it up.
I saw a bus hit a cyclist once, and reported it, spent several hours filling in incident forms.
The police won't do a damn thing, of course. But you should still make sure it is logged with them and get an incident number.
November 19 2008, 11:46:54 UTC 3 years ago
did you bang your head? No
how's your bike? Still working
id the police attend? No
what CCTV footage? Driver said bus has a forward-facing camera
how many witnesses do you suppose there were? There was one cyclist nearby but he didn't want to give me his name or be a witness (he advised me to flee the scene).
were there any other vehicles involved? No
where was it? Milton Road southbound, near junction with Woodhead Drive what time? 09:50 ish what were conditions like? light? wet? Dry and bright
did you get his name and/or insurance details? I asked the driver but he refused to give me them.
Did you get the bus number and company? Stagecoach bus number 19314, license plate AE07 KZR.
November 19 2008, 12:02:48 UTC 3 years ago
Go to your GP and ask them to inspect your injuries and add their observations to your notes.
If the driver does not report the accident to the police within a reasonable time, they will have committed a (quite serious) offence.
In this kind of context, "reasonable" means "as soon as reasonably possible". Leaving it a day is probably dodgy - until the end of the week definitely so.
November 19 2008, 11:45:36 UTC 3 years ago
Have a nice cup of tea.
Did you lose consciousness? Get a neuro-consult at Addies if so.
Please tell the police, I know it won't do any direct good at all, but at least it stops the police from publishing stats that show they are doing their job.
CCC has insurance in the hopefully unlikely case that the bus company sues you.
What bus company runs the busses in Cambridge?
Hope you are ok.
November 19 2008, 12:04:12 UTC 3 years ago
Right. The presumption by both the police and insurance companies is that the driver of the vehicle behind is responsible. "The one behind pays". Very few exceptions. If you drive a vehicle into something or somebody, it's your fault. It doesn't matter much whether the other thing is unexpected (e.g. a fallen tree), or poorly lit (e.g. a car with broken tail lights), or unpredictable (e.g. a drunken driver, or a child). It's the responsibility of every driver Not To Drive Into Stuff.
November 19 2008, 12:02:30 UTC 3 years ago
There seem to be a lot of aggressive bus drivers in Cambridge at the moment. (I've also seen completely idiotic behaviour of cyclists towards buses and so I can see why bus drivers might dislike cyclists, but they're not allowed to run them off the road.) Eventually enough of this will be reported that Something Might Be Done.
November 19 2008, 16:37:00 UTC 3 years ago
November 19 2008, 18:12:27 UTC 3 years ago
November 19 2008, 18:16:46 UTC 3 years ago
November 19 2008, 18:25:43 UTC 3 years ago
November 19 2008, 23:35:46 UTC 3 years ago
November 20 2008, 00:49:52 UTC 3 years ago
I didn't have a pen, but I considered getting photos of the driver and bus number plate. I thought that pulling out a mobile phone while driving mightn't be the best idea, so the thing went unreported, but I think the driver could easily have caused an accident.
November 20 2008, 12:45:14 UTC 3 years ago