tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7099099432720184584.post440588178351269516..comments2023-10-28T19:42:01.039+01:00Comments on Going fast, getting nowhere: Contributory Negligence?Richardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15743685798068014455noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7099099432720184584.post-75917194224231746722011-10-14T21:17:24.173+01:002011-10-14T21:17:24.173+01:00Bucko - thank you. I'm ambivalent on the insu...Bucko - thank you. I'm ambivalent on the insurance thing. On the one hand, it would make sense for either all road users or none to have compulsory insurance, and if cyclists had to shell out as car/bike owners do, it might make it easier to deal with the inevitable comings-together. But on the other, I like cycling as one of the few remaining unregulated pastimes - you buy one, you jump on it, and you go. No test, no tax, no insurance. It is, quite literally, free (apart from the cost of the bike, of course). The only laws are pretty much around lighting, and that is something you'd hardly ignore anyway. I say leave 'em alone, but at the same time hold them to the same standards that other road users have to obey.<br /><br />Answers: yes, and 'just like that'.<br /><br />Nikos: I am reminded of a Private Eye Christmas record many years ago (remember those original 7" floppy discs?). They were 'interviewing' Idi Amin about an opposition politician who had been found dead, and the official verdict was suicide.<br /><br />"But he was found with sixteen knife wounds and riddled with dum-dum bullets!"<br /><br />"Well, he bin sayin' things about me like I was not a great leader and so on. What dat if it ain't suicide?"Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15743685798068014455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7099099432720184584.post-20682779932129855622011-10-14T20:56:27.799+01:002011-10-14T20:56:27.799+01:00You of course have hit on it in para 12 or so of y...You of course have hit on it in para 12 or so of your traetise: Well of course the ultimate contributory factor routine has long been practiced by the Arab justice system against hapless yet innocent foreigners viz if you had not been in our country then you would not have been party to the crime/accident/whatever.Nikoshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03119901226987582553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7099099432720184584.post-59979259555189827402011-10-14T20:55:10.831+01:002011-10-14T20:55:10.831+01:00Richard - Very interesting post.
I wonder if there...Richard - Very interesting post.<br />I wonder if there is another angle to this as we are dealing with insurance companies who, as you say are busiensses.<br />Car drivers have to buy insurance where cyclists do not. There are some things you can do such as fit a decent alarm, to bring down your premium.<br />If the insurance company finds your alarm was not working when your car got nicked, you are unlikely to get a payout.<br />I made a claim against a driver who ran into me years ago. An assesor came out and checked my tyres. If I'd had a bald one I would have been told the car shouldn't have been on the road and not been paid out.<br />Insurers assess risk and thier ultimate aim is to pay out as little as possible. Maybe cycle insurance would address the problem, although I am very much against compulsary insurance in it's current form and would not wish it on anyone who doesn't have to pay for it now.<br /><br />Two questions, is any of this relevant and how do you spell assess?<br /><br />(Sorry, had a few scoops)Buckohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03169970711606515445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7099099432720184584.post-16840509591352929312011-10-14T19:57:58.303+01:002011-10-14T19:57:58.303+01:00Got it. My original post here, and the 2006 Bath ...Got it. My original post <a href="http://goingfastgettingnowhere.blogspot.com/2011/03/cycle-helmets.html" rel="nofollow">here</a>, and the 2006 Bath University press release <a href="http://www.bath.ac.uk/news/articles/archive/overtaking110906.html" rel="nofollow">here</a>.<br /><br />Thanks for the reminder, Julia.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15743685798068014455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7099099432720184584.post-76082457735758622722011-10-14T19:54:32.607+01:002011-10-14T19:54:32.607+01:00You're right. I can't remember the guy...You're right. I can't remember the guy's name, but one of the UK universities did a study which found that drivers passed closer to cyclists wearing a helmet, and other similar ideas. I think I had the link in a post last year. I'll have a root around.<br /><br />There's also the health aspect, which is - er - exercising some cycling enthusiasts. Mandatory helmet wearing reduces cycle usage by a significant amount, so any health benefits from getting people on bikes quickly vanish. A couple of fatalities, or a few hundred premature deaths from heart disease? Tough call.Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15743685798068014455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7099099432720184584.post-53444144140834602082011-10-14T19:46:17.237+01:002011-10-14T19:46:17.237+01:00I'm pretty sure I've seen stuff on the web...I'm pretty sure I've seen stuff on the web related to studies showing that wearing a helmet makes cars LESS careful around cyclists. It's late, but I'll see if I can dig it out tomorrow...JuliaMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07844126589712842477noreply@blogger.com