FocusFan

I was hit by an uninsured driver who was fumbling with his cell phone. My entire front wheel flew off and I bounced off of his hood and went face first onto the pavement, bounced and slid on my left shoulder. As you can imagine, I am in bad shape, although I have no broken bones. The driver gave a false phone, address and insurance number to the police officer. I do have uninsured motorist insurance which will cover medical costs, but my bike is a mess and my brand new Reynolds 58 AERO wheels are trashed. The officer did not ticket this guy who ran a stop sign and was on his phone according to two witnesses. The officer left off the information concerning him being on his cell phone off of the police report. I am angry as hell. I have been training for a year for a race that I will not be able to do now. Anyway... any advice on what to do about this situation would be helpful. With all of the upgrades to my IZALCO, I am out almost 13k.

PlanoFuji

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...MBERS-READ****

Are you saying the driver did not have either a driver's license or proof of insurance and the cop let them go?

cuzzinit

ALLWAYS make sure the cop tickets the driver at fault... ALLWAYS you cannot not count on a police officer having good judgement or even have the benefit of good training. Nor can you trust one

rebel1916

How are you gonna do that?

rumrunn6

call the station or visit it and have the police report corrected or amended. do not leave the station without filing a sworn statement of some kind. make a public record, it's your right.

Drew Eckhardt 

Your uninsured motorist coverage should cover both medical expenses beyond what you get from no-fault medical coverage and property damage.

rebel1916

Your personal statement doesn't hold half as much weight as a cop issuing a citation. And I am aware of no mechanism to force a cop to do so.

RaleighSport

Wow.. I would be beyond livid. You may want to ask for the watch sergeant or someone like that if the responding officer felt leaving out such key details in the report was okay...

Or perhaps create an e-mail correspondence with the officer in question so you can ask why he'd leave out such details and then at least have some kind of proof he was aware of the facts he left out of the report.

I'm just an arm-chair lawyer though so listening to me may also be a bad idea

ModeratedUser150120149

You have left out a lot from your post. But, the picture you paint leads me to answer your question this way:

-Immediately if you have not already done so file claims with all your insurance companies.
-Seek the advice from a local group that reviews police procedures. Failing that seek the advice of a competent attorney.

Delete this thread in its' entirety. If neccessary get the administrator to help.
NEVER make any public comment about this until the matter is fully resolved.

FocusFan

I was taken to the hospital and just received the police report. He had a driver's license and proof of insurance, but he had let the policy lapse. He re-instated the policy right after the accident and tried to lie about the time of accident. He gave an incorrect address and phone number to the officer. The cop let him go and gave him no ticket for going through a stop sign and hitting me. The cop also left the cell phone usuage statement off of the witness statement. I just talked to his boss and he is calling the witnesses back and if they say he was on the phone to him he will add it to the report. It really doesn't do anything for me, but it is the point. I have called the district attorney office here in San Diego as well. It is not just the point of it for me. Cyclists are not treated fairly and it needs to stop,

FocusFan

I am livid RaleighSport. It takes a lot to make me angry, but too many cyclists are being killed here in San Diego and not enough is being done.

FocusFan

I wish you were right Drew. I have great insurance with Geico and they are telling me that since it is a bike it is not covered under the uninsured motorist coverage.

FocusFan

I have called and spoken to his supervisor and they are looking into amending the report. I was unable to do anything at the time of the accident due to my injuries. They needed to get me to the hospital.

walrus1

For christ sakes stop posting this instant! Ask a mod or an admin about deleting this or at the very least remove all information via edit post. Find an attorney right ****ing now! But above all stop posting about the incident until after you talk to an attorney! STOP POSTING!!! Read this https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...MBERS-READ**** and reread it and then read it again. For the love all things good STOP TALKING ABOUT THE COLLISION HERE!

FocusFan

I have contacted two attorney firms, but once they heard about his lack of insurance, I did not hear back. I will look into a local group that reviews police procedures. I have filed the claim with his insurance (who denied it) and with mine already. I have called the district attorney office to report and I have spoken to the officer's supervisor who said he will amend the report to include the cell phone portion.

I tried to keep the original post to a minimum and to just the major details so as not to go on and on. Thank you for your advice HawkOwl.

himespau 

It seems like you should be able to go after him personally for property damage. Your insurance is also going to be going after him for your medical bills, so you might want to get to him first before they get a judgement against him and he declares bankruptcy, but I'm not a real lawyer, I just play one on tv.

himespau 

I know the never say anything advice is solid, but it leads so often to stories on here that we get the beginning of but never see the ending.

Also, OP, sorry about the loss of your bike and race.

Rootman

The issue here is that very few attorneys will be willing to touch the case because there is little chance of them getting any percentage of settlement over it. As the poster above mentioned as soon as they here "no insurance" they pretty much decline or insist on a hefty retainer fee in order to cover their costs and make a profit, and after all that's why they are in business - to make money.

I wish the OP luck. He should keep checking with lawyers to see if he can find one that is willing to pursue this without costing him an arm and a leg. Most, people without insurance have little to no assets anyway so there may be little won in pursuing them as the old song goes "nothin' from nothin' leaves nothin'".

I wish the OP well and hope that he can find a way to nail the guy.

FocusFan

Thank you. I think any cyclist understands how attached we get to our bikes. She was a beauty!

Keith99

Well that he had it before and let it lapse and then tried to get it reinstated and lied about the time of the accident shows he at least had enough to write the check.

He may have something.

But your point is very good. First step might be seeing is there is anything to go after. If not spending even more money to get a judgment that will never be paid is just adding insult ot injury.

FocusFan

Thank you rootman. I completely understand why a few people are telling me to delete these posts to protect myself, but the guy lives in an apartment in a bad part of town, so I really have nothing to lose. I also am not saying anything that I believe could be held against me. The driver admitted fault so this isn't about a he said she said. I am just looking for advice from others who may have gone through this in the past or who might have suggestions on recovering my loss or at the least, how to make sure that the police report reflects the proper information. It sounds like I have already done all that I should have from these responses. It is nice to see others so passionate about helping someone recover from something like this.

Essex

Sorry about your accident and Focus Izalco. They're really nice bikes. Also, glad that (even injured) you are doing the right thing.

From a legal perspective you are getting as much evidence as you can. And not surprised the law firms are not hot on this. But the prospect of having to drag an individual into court for their assets vs. insurance payouts make it less than worth their time & profit. That said - the jerk could be held liable and perhaps property as well?

Rest and heal quickly.

rumrunn6

go to the station and get a copy of the amended report

I-Like-To-Bike

I dunno about posting that the police report was amended by a supervisor who was not present at the scene and only because of your actions after the accident in calling the DA and other officials and telling them your side of the story.

FocusFan

Thank you Essex. The encouragement you and others have given really helps with the emotional portion of this event.