Cyclist Pothole Claims

Cyclist Pothole Claims against the Council and Highways Authority

It’s a sad fact of life that local councils and Highway Authorities these days are strapped for cash and this is all too evident when we look at the state of our roads.

Believe it or not despite the desperate state of our roads the Council and Highway Authorities are under a strict legal duty to maintain the highways.  It follows that if you have fallen from your Bicycle and suffered injury as a result of a defect in the road you may well have a claim for compensation.

It’s not at all surprising that a vast amount of cyclists are injured as a result of potholes in the road.

If you are riding a mountain bike or a hybrid bicycle you might be lucky and may not fall off but if you are riding a road cycle (or a racer) because the tyres are so narrow you are much more likely to fall off and being injured as your front tyre is likely to burst or be severely buckle.

Is the Defect  Serious Enough?

In order to pursue your Cyclist Pothole Claim it will be necessary to demonstrate the highway was at the time of your accident in a dangerous condition. Clearly, the court won’t entertain claims involving defects of a minor nature and as each claim will turn on its own merits. There is no substitute for requesting a solicitor who specialises in these type of claims to provide an opinion in relation to the prospects of success.

• In practice this means that you need to make sure you have a number (the more the merrier) of close up photographs of the pothole which should be photographed with a ruler so that the depth and area of the pothole can be clearly seen. (If you have a newspaper it is often a good idea to also show this in one or two of the photographs as a means of verifying the date.)

•  It’s also a good tip to make sure that you take several photographs showing the surrounding area and any landmarks so that the precise location of the pot hole can be established by the council at a later stage.

•  It’s hard to under estimate the importance of the photographs you take as these will form the basis of your liability claim.

• You need to be ever mindful that if the photographs taken are not of sufficient quality there is always the risk that the council will (eventually!) fill in the pothole with the likely effect of totally destroying your chances of bringing a successful claim.

Please feel free to contact us now on 0800 652 0586  so that we can give you all the Guidance and Help you need in relation to the taking of the Photographs which will form the basis of any claim that you have

What About Defences?

In our experience Defendant Council’s as a rule generally resist Cyclist Pothole Claims by relying upon a Defence which is allowed under the Highways legislation.

This can mean that even if the defect is dangerous the claim is rejected on the basis that it is alleged that the Council had an adequate system of inspection and maintenance in place.

Very often therefore whether the claim succeeds will be down to the hard work, tenacity and experience of the Claimant’s solicitor in challenging the maintenance records disclosed. Cyclist Pothole Claims can be tricky for a variety of reasons and without the support and help of a specialist Cyclist Pothole Claims Solicitor there can only be one side that is bound to win!

What will it cost to make Your Cyclist Pothole Claim?

We are pleased to be able to offer you a ‘no win no fee’ agreement which means if you lose your Cyclist Pothole Claim, you won’t pay us penny.  We guarantee that if your claim is unsuccessful, you will pay ABSOLUTELY NOTHING which means you can have real peace of mind.

Contact us today

There are lots of ways to talk to us, and we’ll contact you as soon as possible. You can fill in our Online Contact Form, or if you would prefer to email us, you can on [email protected] .

You can talk to us on 01663 761890 and our friendly team will be happy to help.

Because If You Don’t Ask You’ll Never Know!