‘MOVING ON WITH MY LIFE’

IN RECENT MONTHS, Osbornes helped a cyclist who was in a crash, which involved both a lorry and a car. He was riding across a junction when a sports car undertook a lorry travelling behind him and collided with the rear of his bike; the force of the impact threw him to the ground, and he sustained a brain injury in addition to serious fractures to his face, collarbone, and skull.

After seeking the initial medical attention, the individual’s thoughts turned to finding a lawyer. He said: “The old saying that ‘it will never happen to me’, was certainly true in my case. I had been cycling in London for years and was incidentfree. After the initial shock of what has happened, I knew that I needed a lawyer and chose Osbornes because of the relationship with LCC and online reviews. The real deal-breaker was speaking to them and the confidence they instilled that they would be able to help.”

The case was not straight forward, however, as the driver of the car claimed the lorry had crashed into him causing a concertina collision. To combat this claim, Andrew Middlehurst, a specialist cycling lawyer at Osbornes, obtained camera footage from a second cyclist which showed the car undertaking the lorry just prior to the collision. This evidence proved key in negotiations with the driver’s insurance company, during which it was made clear that any denial of liability on their part would be robustly argued.

Bringing a claim

This is a reminder to always take pictures (if possible) of the collision scene and take down the details of any witnesses. With many cyclists recording their journeys with headcams, such footage is not as rare as it might at first seem and can assist your lawyer in establishing liability.

When bringing a legal claim, many of us think of the financial award or ‘compensation’, however the role of your lawyer is to also ensure that the injured party receives the best medical care, and that the financial settlement takes into account any on-going medical needs. This is why some cases can take years to settle and interim payments are made. In this case, where there was a brain injury, extra care needed to be taken as the lasting consequences of a brain injury may not immediately present themselves. To better understand the long-term impact of the injuries sustained, Osbornes arranged for the cyclist to be examined by several medical experts to investigate the medium to long-term impacts of the injuries he had sustained. The result of instructing these medical experts and counsel was that Andrew was able to reach a settlement with the insurers of £50,000.

The cyclist said: “The work that Andrew and his team undertook of course ended up with a financial package, but gave me peace of mind to know that medically I was looked after, and this has allowed me to move on with my life.”

LOOKING FOR A reliable and efficient way to protect your bikes at home? Then the awardwinning Protect A Cycle (PAC) stores should be at the top of your tick list. Rigorously tested by the Loss Prevention Certification Board in August 2022, these metal stores have been proven to cope with the evolving tools and methods used by bicycle thieves.

Thames Valley police has installed the stores to protect its own bicycles, and they recently featured at the RHS Hyde Hall Flower Show within the ‘Secured Garden’, presented by Designing Out Crime officers from Essex police.

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