Cyclists to Gain More Safety Whilst Travelling on the Road

Police forces in the UK are looking at the trend of ‘close-pass’ drivers, who endanger cyclists’ lives on the road.

West Midlands Police are saddling up to detect incidents involving vehicles passing too closely to cyclists, with bike-riding, camera-wearing officers radioing the details of close-pass drivers to in-car colleagues who will then stop the offender.

It is a move designed to tackle an offence which happens all too often on UK roads, with a potential punishment of £100 and three penalty points on licence to anyone passing within 1.5m of a cyclist.

West Midlands and Cambridgeshire Police are already targeting drivers, with plain-clothes officers in Scotland now also on-bike.

Momentum seems to be gathering behind eradicating this offence, following higher-profile cases involving cyclists being overtaken dangerously. Patrick Kelly was charged with dangerous driving in May, after an incident with 18 riders in July 2018, and given a 12-month ban and fined £400. In said incident, his wing mirror came within two inches of one cyclist when he passed the group, according to an article on cyclingweekly.com. When approached later by the cyclists, he is reported as saying “I’ll f***ing get you ones next time.”

The same article also highlighted the case of Lauren Dolan, who broke her collarbone when a frustrated driver overtook and then, on a descent, broke sharply as an act of ‘punishment braking’.

What is punishment braking?

This is the act of a frustrated driver overtaking a cyclist and then slamming on their brakes to disrupt the route and momentum of the vulnerable road user, forcing them to take evasive action.

Can you claim if you’re a cyclist who has been involved in a non-fault accident?

Absolutely; if you have been involved in an accident with a vehicle which wasn’t your fault then our team can offer expert guidance and advice as you progress your claim with Winn Solicitors. To get your claim started, click here, talk to an advisor through our Live Chat service or ring 0800 988 6288.

For more information on making a claim, click here to be taken to our cycling accident claims page.

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