donotpanic

My girlfriend was riding her bike through campus today, and she was doored by a car stopped at a gate on the passenger side. She's a little bruised and scraped, but overall ok. Her bike seems to have maybe a ****ed up fork, definitely out of true wheel, and just typical wear and tear, and the brake and gear cables seem to be on there by their last thread. Is the person who doored her at all liable for anything that happened? What is people's experience? She really can't afford to fix anything on her bike right now.

eyefloater

https://www.city.toronto.on.ca/cyclin...eweek_2005.htm <- 1/2 down the page.

2manybikes

It depends on the law where you are. Where I am it's against the law to open the door into traffic without looking first. You need to check the law.

skelly

Did you get their information?

rideabike

There are things that people do to cause damages to others that are against the law. And there are things that people do to cause damages to others that are not against the law, but are negligent.

I don't know where you are so I don't know if the driver broke the law. But if there are damages worth pursuing, consult an attorney. Even if the driver did not break the law, the driver could be negligent. Most attorneys take negligence cases involving automobiles on a contingency basis - you don't pay unless you recover damages.

bostontrevor

And where I am, it's not.

On the other hand, the door-opening party is liable for insurance damages.

Unless you live in Cambridge, and then it is against the law.

We're working on getting it all sorted out into something that makes sense.

invisiblah

find a lawyer. look around, and you can be sure to find one that is a cycling advocate, and you can at least get a free consultation and see what's what. it never hurts to ask, because at least then you know instead of wondering.

rwan

i dunno...


i mean. your gf is ok right?

as much as you love her, and as much as we all hate "cagers..." usually, they are just people too. right?

just because they don't think about cyclists as often as we like doesn't make them in the wrong. they are just.. uninformed.

chances are this person was some average joe, working like the rest of us, trying to get through another day, right?
sucks that she was doored. but **** happens in life. we all knew something would probably happen some day when we first got in the saddle.



just throwing in another point of view -- coming from an avid fixed gear rider AND a motor vehicle owner.

bellweatherman

A-B-S-O-L-U-T-E-L-Y the driver is responsible for dooring you if you are following the rules of the road and riding down the street. It is the driver's responsibility to check his mirrors and look behind him before opening his door. Bob Mionske, a bike attorney, who writes a column in Velonews has answered this question in one of his articles.

jfmckenna

No definitely not. Anytime an incident like this happens which involves a car then it is called an accident. The car owner simply has to say, "oops my bad" and he is relinquished of all responsibilities. Sorry but that’s the way it is

If I am faced with a moral dilemma here is what I do. I ask myself, “What would I do if I doored some poor cyclist?” I would do everything I can to make it so that that poor cyclist is returned to her life the way it was seconds before I screwed it up. Why should you expect anything else?

BostonFixed

You forgot the "I didn't see you" bit.

r-dub

Tell us what state you're in and we can help a little more. CA vehicle code specifically states that drivers are responsible for not opening doors into traffic (including bike traffic.)

my favorite line is, "Oh, I didn't mean to do that."

that's good...then it's just reckless endangerment rather than aggravated assault.

donotpanic

We're in NC.

2manybikes

Are you lobbying to get a law changed or addded or ?

I have also wondered where you get all the good information you have about cycling laws in Mass.? I can not always find what I want on line.

richardmasoner

North Carolina is one of six states that still operates with the archaic "contributory negligence" rule, which means if you contributed to the accident in any way, no matter how slight, you are denied any judgement.

If your GF was passing on the right (which is what you seem to write), then she may have contributed to the accident.

But don't listen to me and the other legal eagles on this forum -- talk to a real lawyer about this. I have no idea about the legality of passing on the right in your state.

richardmasoner

Googling for "bicycle law" for almost any U.S. state always results in massbike's excellent resource on the topic.

https://www.massbike.org/bikelaw/content.htm

RFM

webist

Passenger side isn't opened into traffic generally, unless it is traffic that really shouldn't be there?

helmets save

Acutally funny or sad that you say that. I was riding in my friends car on campus. And its a single lane road and there was a biker behind us. He stopped to let me off and wait for a crap load of crossing traffic. I open my door into a cyclist. I couldnt see him he was goign really fast.

I think it was the bikers fault, since we were on a one lane road. He shouldnt be passing since he is technically a car. HE shouldnt have been espically passing on the right.

jfmckenna

Possibly true but you know really how hard is it to look over your shoulder. Thats all it would take you know? I'm sure the person you doored suffered more than you would have craining your neck around to see if anyone was there.......

bostontrevor

One of the key parts of the Bicyclists Bill of Rights and Responsibilities is to clarify that the motorist is legally required to make sure that the way is clear before opening the door. It won a preliminary vote but now it's in Ways and Means. We're working to get it ejected to a floor vote. We're afraid that Ways and Means may sit on it because there are parts of it that require funds even though we've also secured funding specifically to implement them. (A training program for the police academy.)

MassBike's web site, the mailing list, fellow MassBikers and knowing that pretty much everything pertaining to cycling is contained in Mass General Law Ch. 85 Sec 11B and some in Chapters 89 and 90. It's subtle. There's nothing in the law that says you can't door a cyclist, ergo...

bostontrevor

The cyclist may not have been operating in a prudent fashion, but that doesn't mean he was doing something illegal. It may be legal to ride to the right of other vehicles in your state as it is here. The real question in my mind is, was the cyclist moving in the travel lane? If so, it seems to me that you have a responsibility to make sure that the way is clear before opening the door, just as if it had been a really fast automobile or motorcycle coming along.

...

i was doored a while back, called a few lawyers and nobody wanted to take my case (my medical bills were not enough to warrant any $ for pain and suffering) i went through the guy isurance and they reimbursed me for repairs and lost wages.

more recently i was involved in another accident where i was informed by people on the board and others that i wouldn't be able to get anything, since it was supposedly my fault, but i ended up getting money from the isurance company anyways. i guess it makes more sense for them to settle out of court for what is a small sum to them than the cost of going to court and possibly losing.

2manybikes

Awesome !! very cool. Training for the police, that's important. I'm impressed.

Thanks very much, I'm going to check it out. Have a nice weekend.

phinney

Best not to put yourself in a position to be doored.

helmets save

The thing was that there was no lane to the right of the car. He squeezed himself betwween the car and the curb which was only like 2 feet.

I couldnt see him if he was goign to pass becuase it was downhill. He was there when we started down the one lane road. Then the next time i saw him was when i openned the door into him.

Like i totally feel bad, and the noise made was really loud. But as a cyclist i think poeple should obey law and be safe.