Cyclists must follow traffic signs and are subject to the same basic regulations as anyone else. Cyclists are often proactive about safety, as they have little to protect them in the event of a collision.
Unfortunately, drivers are not necessarily as safety-conscious as cyclists must be. They can easily cause collisions that put cyclists in the hospital or worse, and they may try to deny responsibility for the crash. The three explanations below are among the most common reasons that drivers cause car-bicycle collisions.
1. Failing to watch for bikes
Drivers often claim they didn’t see a bicycle. The chances are good that the bicycle was visible, but the driver simply didn’t register their presence mentally. Intentional blindness occurs when drivers fail to check their surroundings for smaller vehicles, including bicycles.
2. Resentment about sharing the road
Drivers often feel annoyed about the presence of cyclists or even pedestrians and motorcycles on the road. They may intentionally engage in behavior that is annoying or unsafe, such as brake-checking in front of a cyclist or tailgating a bicycle when there is no bicycle lane for the cyclist to occupy. Those behaviors can lead to a driver causing a preventable crash due to their unnecessary proximity to the bicycle.
3. Lack of familiarity with the rules
Cyclists often rely on hand gestures to communicate their intent to stop or turn. Drivers who are not familiar with those gestures may fail to understand what a cyclist intends to do next. They can then cause preventable crashes due to their lack of understanding.
When a motorist is at fault for a car-bicycle collision, they are typically liable for the damages their choices generate. Filing an insurance claim and possibly even a lawsuit may be necessary for injured cyclists hoping to recoup the cost of a bicycle collision.
Subscribe To This Blog’s Feed