General Cycling Discussion - Has anyone heard of a club being sued?

I hear a lot about how clubs need insurance, lawyers, and waivers, but I am wondering if your club has ever been sued.

Has your club or anyone's club that you have heard of been defendants to a lawsuit from riders injury or loss?

Please add any factual information.

Yes, There was a woman riding her bike in the collinsvile CT area, when she was passed by a pace line, she got scared and tangled up with some of the pace line.

She sued everyone she could,the club, the riders she crashed with, riders that tried to help her after the crash and the shop that hosted the training ride.

I don't know of the out come of the lawsuits, I'll try to find out

accident description here:
http://www.massbike.org/email/archive/199806/0083.html

another version:
http://www.massbike.org/email/

the ever-expanding litigation:
http://citypaper.net/articles/092498/onmedia3.shtml

Rollo, Yep, your right thats the one. I don't know why I thought is was a local club.

A local club in Upstate NY was once sued after a pedestrian was struck and killed during an informal time trial. Every member at the time trial, some of whom were miles away from the accident, was individually sued. Because the club recorded timed and awarded points for places, there was the possibility that they could have been charged for illegal racing on a public, which is just as illegal on bicycles as it is in cars. I don't recall if anyone was actually charged with a traffic violation, but everyone had to egt their own lawyer to defend themself.
After that, the club was very careful to follow the requirements of their USCF insurance for every event.

I was on a fundraising ride where a cyclist (riding like a jackass) crashed and sued the organizers and the nonprofit organization that was to be helped by the money raised. I'm not sure what happened but the ride was cancelled the following year. Since then the ride ride has been reinstated.

Posted by rollo tommassi - 02-18-04 at 12:06 PM
accident description here:
http://www.massbike.org/email/archive/199806/0083.html

another version:
http://www.massbike.org/email/

the ever-expanding litigation:
http://citypaper.net/articles/092498/onmedia3.shtml


It looks like she won after an arbitration. Philly's court dockets are online. Based on the stories, she was riding her bike on the road, but was not part of an organized ride. As the riders were overtaking her, she fell and the riders ran over her. She had extensive medical bills.

Here is the key note from the Philly Common Pleas Court docket:

19-FEB-1999
12:19 PM AWFFP - REPORT & AWARD OF ARBITRATORS $50,000.00
Docket Entry: FINDING FOR THE PLAINTIFF AND AGAINST DEFENDANTS, [seven names omitted] IN THE AMOUNT OF $50,000.00.

Source: http://courts.phila.gov/