Why a Criminal conviction didn’t prevent a Civil claim for damages.
Our client was riding his Yamaha MT10 motorcycle west on the B783 East Mains Road, East Kilbride approaching the nearside junction with Iona Avenue. He was travelling at a speed estimated by himself and witnesses of around 55mph in a 30mph zone.
At the same time, the driver of a Hyundai Kona was turning right from Iona Avenue onto East Mains Road. There was a collision between the front of the Yamaha and the front offside of the Hyundai. Our client was launched from his motorcycle before landing heavily. He sustained significant and life-altering injuries and to add to his problems he was charged with dangerous driving but on advice pled guilty to careless driving.
Almost a year went by before our client contacted us as he had assumed wrongly that as he had been charged and convicted then that would be the end of the matter, with no chance of recovering compensation for his horrific injuries.
We advised our client it certainly wasn’t the end of the matter because to be awarded compensation or damages in Civil Law we simply need to establish negligence on balance of probability against the driver. Sight lines for the driver were good and even though our client was exceeding the speed limit, he was there to be seen.
Proving negligence is what really matters in Civil Law.
We started off by recovering the police files and discovered within the files a statement given to the police at the time by the driver. The driver said he first saw our client when he was approximately 20 metres away. Why the Police didn’t also charge the driver with careless driving is beyond comprehension.
We opened a case and comprehensively worked on all aspects of liability, establishing negligence and quantum, establishing the extent of the injuries and loss. We intimated a claim against the driver’s insurance company stating the collision was caused as a result of fault and negligence of their policyholder.
It was clear the driver’s insurance company accepted our position that our client would have been in the drivers’ sight lines from 96 metres and by pulling out when the motorcyclist was just 20 metres away the driver caused the collision.
Speeding motorcyclist was there to be seen and still owed a duty of care.
Although there was never an admission of liability, our client was offered a substantial sum in damages which he accepted.
The causative factor or, in other words, the cause of the accident was not the speeding motorcyclist but a driver pulling out into the path of a motorcyclist who was there to be seen.
What this case tells us about justice for injured riders.
This case highlights the difference between civil and criminal law. Even in circumstances where a motorcyclist is convicted of careless driving, it does not preclude a claim for compensation.
A claim for compensation will be successful if you can prove negligence on the part of the person you consider to be at fault and also establish that you were injured as a result of that negligence. In this case, the fault rested with the driver with speed being a small contributing factor.
This case highlights what we see commonly and that is motorcyclists perhaps viewed by prosecuting authorities as an easy target for convictions. Whilst our client was exceeding the speed limit, from a civil liability standpoint, his driving was not the negligent act which caused the collision. The clear message is that a conviction is no barrier to an award of compensation.
Our Award Winning Team
Brenda Mitchell
Senior Partner
Brenda has been a Personal Injury Lawyer for over 38 years and for the last 20 years has specialised representing injured motorcyclists, cyclists and pedestrians.
Jodi Gordon
Partner
Jodi is a Partner at RTA Law LLP with 14+ years’ experience in catastrophic injury claims for vulnerable road users including cyclists and motorcyclists.
Thomas Mitchell
Partner
Thomas represents clients who have been involved in road traffic incidents and he specialises in representing vulnerable road users such as pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclists.
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