at 7 this morning on the way to work,i was turning right off a main road,the opposite lane was to me was backed up so had to wait for a space to open up so i could turn,then when it did i eased into it and checked the bicycle lane and than BANG!!!a scooter was in the  bicycle lane and swipped the front of my car just to the right of the number plate!and he went down pretty bad,now im fine he,s ok apart from a couple scratches and a free ambulance ride but i now have a fooked bumper and his scooter is a mess.i donno if he was speeding its a bit of a blind spot coz its on a slight hill,i did look for cyclist but it happend so fast,my car was prob 2 or 3 inches into the lane,if it was a bicycle nothing would of happend .but a scooter takes up the whole lane!

Who,s at fault?

are they alowed in bicycle lanes?

 thats a tricky one! as far as i know scooters arent allowed in the cycle lanes however they could turn it round and say it doesnt matter you pulled out on him?

i dont know where that will go id want to just fix the car myself a new bumper and spraying will be less than 150 definatly unless its a r32 or anni etc

thats what i want 2,cant get hold of they guy and iv held off making a claim,im hoping he thinks its his fault and is happy to leave it as that(and stay out of bicycle lanes)where could i get a new bumper from and sprayed?

 you hit a chav on a scooter??? can i shake ur hand please, i cant stand the way they cut infront of you so quickly...

no i wish!it was a fellow saffa(no rugby comments please have had enuf of them at worklol)he was pretty friendly regardless of what had happend,so glad it wasnt a girl!!!

the scooter guy just phoned me and we decided to call it quits!

now i just need a bumper,is this a good excuse to get sum decent  bumpers and skirts???

 R32 bumper FTW :D

Those ABS ones of ebay seem pretty good!

From a motorcyclists point of view using the cycle lane by the kerb to undertake traffic (even if it's stationary) is a total no no. If you need to 'filter' you should always do it down the outside of the traffic where you are more visible and in a position where other drivers are more likely to expect you to pass them.

I know you've settled it already but I'd say the scooter rider is clearly in the wrong.

thanks,i thought as much,at the time talking to the police,i asked 1 of them in his opinion who was in the wrong and he said it was 50/50 butmore mine coz i pulled out.i later found out that the police guy was a motercyclist himself!

im so paranoid now of anything on two wheels and being in london thats all the time!!lol

thanks Garfie

 I'd say it's more your fault too. Turning through traffic means you have the greater duty of care. I'd be more inclined to say 75% your fault, 25% the scooter. Maybe even totally your fault. I think you'll be very lucky if he doesn't claim off you. Best hope he's not walking through town and one of those "have you had an accident in the last 5 years" people doesn't get hold of him.

 Was he overtaking traffic by going in the cycle lane, When i did my CBT training i was told only to overtake on the right, and not to ride in cycle lanes. 

so mike,if i was driving in the cycle lane in my car and had a bump you saying it would be the other persons fault?the right hand side of my bumper was like an inch over the cycle lane.not much i could of done apart from get out my car to see if anything is coming

its a lane for cyclist  and is just over half a meter in width from the curb,not for big fat scooters,thats why it happend if he was on a bicycle nothing would of happend!

and you yourself (hopfully having a licence)should now,dont overtake on the left!

 No offence intended but driving a car in a cycle lane just isn't going to happen in reality is it?

Facts are simple. You turned across traffic. Yeah he shouldn't have been there, but that in itself is not negligence. You should have made sure the way was clear.

what you have to ask yourself is.... would a reasonable man expect a cycle to be in a cycle lane? Whether it be a scooter or a cyclist, you'd have still knocked them off. Scooters are not that much bigger than bikes.

Cyclist...you'd be 100% at fault.... scooter rider I still stand firm that you'd be found more at fault than 50%

Ask youself the question if someone parks illegally....and you bump their car, is it their fault for parking illegally? The answer is no, in every case. Negligence is a tricky thing to prove Fly, I'm not trying to be arsey about things I'm just telling you how an insurance company will see it, and a judge. I've got the benefit of almost 10 years worth of case law and litigation experience, and I've handled cases like yours.

You asked for opinions, and this is mine. If you do get a claim against you, and you need any free advice, I'll happily help you with a defence. Good luck chief.

fly_1610:

should now,dont overtake on the left!

Unless you're on the track... then you have to.

no offence taken,thanks for the offer,hopefully it wont go to that.

loving your track pic,would love to take mine out onto a track 1 day