Hit by Car - In pain.

[Turd Ferguson]

On my ride from Burlington to Tdot I got hit by a car on the new Carbon Fiber bike ( 2 weeks new ).

The driver was charged with failing to share the road.

I'm banged up and so it the bike :(

I suppose I'll need to call the drivers insurance company for compensation. The bike will be at the lbs tomorrow for a once over. Odd thing was, one of the ladies from the store mentioned Friday that there is some bad karma going around...a couple customers had been hit by cars.

Can anyone make a recommendation as to how I should proceed? I'd like to dot the i's and cross the t's and not sure what steps are next.

Thanks.

[Treker]

Sorry about the hit. Stinks doesn't it? I was in your shoes last year - same thing - he got charged for failing to yield yada yada yada.

I received the same advice from several lawyers whom I know and same cooroborated by insurance types: basically your remedy will be expenses related to the accident. ie, salary not covered by insurance may be claimable, bike repairs (replacement), and other related expenses etc. It's my understanding that the days of insurance windfalls changed a few years ago. If you were clobbered and not expected to get back to a reasonable state of health, ie, wheelchair etc, then it's a different story and the other party's insurance ponies up. But if you're gonna be okay, then it's basic expenses. That sucks.

Keep receipts for any expense incurred. And good luck.

[heywood]

Same thing happened to me two years ago, totaled the bike and broke my leg. What Treker said is correct you have to be compensated by the drivers insurance company. You should also get compensated for your pain and suffering (depending on the extent of your injuries i.e. a broken leg is so many dollars, stitches are so many dollars and so on..) You only get this claim after all the other injuries have been addressed. Since the changes to the insurance act a few years ago I got screwed out of a decent settlement since you only get large settelments if the injuries are "catastrophic" which usually requires the loss of limbs or you're dead!! Anything else is usually a settlement of under $100,000.00 of which the government takes $30,000.00 So if you get a settlement of $50,000 you will only get $20,000. The idea behind this is to stop 'frivolous' claims??!! I got $55,000 dollars for my broken leg of which I saw $25,000 which is bull**** because it just allows the insurance companies to keep more money since they've probably bought off the politicians...buy hey at least I got enough for the downpayment of my house from the idiot driver that hit me and I recovered (of which I am greatful).

Hope this helps...

[dhaval.bhavsar]

I was hit recently and went to the police, and they said that nobody was at fault. My bike was totaled, but his car was scratched.n Is it worth it to look into insurance claims? The bike was old, however, it is all that I have for transportation. Just need some advice, dopn't have the luxary of lawyer friends. Thanks in advance.

[Broken Bones]

If you are unable to afford legal counsel, you can proceed through small claims court, in Ontario your limited to a claim of $10,000.00, anything greater than that amount requires it to be files with the higher civil courts. Each province would have their own limitations, etc.

You can sue for damages such as lose of income, medical bills, damage to the bike requiring repair/replacement. In your claim you would ask for pre and post judgment interest, if you don't ask for it in the claim, you won't get it. You also want to ensure you ask for legal costs related to your claim. You will never get all of your legal costs covered, but you will most likely get a decent chunk.

Now, as I said, you have a limit of $10,000 in Ontario for your claim, but that does not include the amounts after pre and post judgment interest and legal costs, so essentially if you won on a $10,000 claim, you could get above that amount in the end.

If you want help with a small claims court claim you may also hire a paralegal, while they are not licences lawyers, they are legally allowed to represent you in small claims court and are fully certified and trained. The benefit of a paralegal is you get somebody who knows the ins and outs of the system, with a much lower rate than a lawyer.

[Turd Ferguson]

I was hit recently and went to the police, and they said that nobody was at fault. My bike was totaled, but his car was scratched.n Is it worth it to look into insurance claims? The bike was old, however, it is all that I have for transportation. Just need some advice, dopn't have the luxary of lawyer friends. Thanks in advance.

My recommendation would be to call the drivers insurance company and file a claim. They will likely replace your bicycle as they did mine. You will see two adjusters, one for personal injury, the second for property. The drivers insurance company is responsible for property damage. OHIP, employer benefits and your insurance company are reponsible for the personal injury. Failing all those, the drivers insurance company covers personal damages.

While I don't know the particulars ( who hit who ) of your accident..the officer may not lay a charge because it's work for them. Frankly, some officers are just plain lazy and don't want the extra paperwork. If you got slammed by a car who wasn't obeying the rules of the road charges should of been laid. I was lucky in that when I got hit my first call was to my brother who is a cop. I could of been seriously screwed especially since I have to go through physio to heal the wounds. Secondly, there was a doctor in the area who recommended I go directly to the hospital.

IMO, if the driver was at fault you shouuld of called 911... if the police were to charge the driver it's a pretty open/closed case to get a replacement bike. I'm lucky in that I had good advice. Left to my own devices and being shaken up I may of just jumped on the bike or walked home.. I'm glad I didn't as my knees and arm are pretty f*$ked up and wouldn't of made it home anyway. An hour after the accident my right knee was the size of a cantelope,..and today still have tissue damage in my left arm.

Good luck. I hope things work out. Getting hit by a car really sucks. I've been bikeless for 3 weeks, going on 4 and my physio starts Tuesday. When the drivers insurance adjuster was jerking me around I made a point in telling him that the day I was hit the driver went to dinner afterwards....I went to the hospital and missed 3 days off work.

[Turd Ferguson]

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=313422

More details regarding my accident.

[Malistryx]

Where abouts did this happen? I've had a lot of people drive way too close and doing stupid, stupid things on Lakeshore between Burlington and Toronto...

Hope you feel better soon.

[dhaval.bhavsar]

thanks for all your advise. It's much appreciated. I think the one mistake I did was not calling the police as soon as the incident occured. As you said, your first instinct was to walk home, and thats what I did, just to get my bike home, see what I could do later, but I guess I should've thought about it more. Thanks though.

BTW, this happened Kennedy and 14th. Luckily, I was perfectly alright after the incident, I basically bounced off the hood, and was left with just a couple of scratches, not so lucky was the bike.

Hope you feel better TF.