November 18, 2019 2 min to read
What to do if you find yourself in a bicycle accident that wasn’t your fault
Category : Cars, Health, Transportation
James was cycling along a lane of vehicles caught in a traffic jam when one of the cars inadvertently pulled out from the rest and smacked right into his bike.
He was hit with so much force that he flew off, a few yards from where the bike landed. Luckily, the bike was alright, and James felt he was okay.
Helped to his feet by the already-apologetic driver, he got up, brushed the dust off his gear and resumed riding again. But oblivious to him, he had been hit hard and had a few injuries.
“I didn’t bother to call the police“, he recalls.
After about a half a mile of riding, James felt intense pain all over his body. He stopped biking and sought the help of motorists passing-by so that he could be taken to the hospital.
But as he later came to discover, the motorist was squarely to blame for the accident for it is against the law to turn left without following the due precautionary measures!
So, what should you do if find yourself in a bicycle accident that wasn’t your fault?
James’ case is a classic example of the situations that many cyclists find themselves in. They get hit and suffer mild or severe injuries only to be helped by someone who wasn’t at fault.
It’s often said that when caught in the middle of such a scenario, the first thing would be to help the biker first since they are the ones that are particularly vulnerable.
There’s no great difference between the kind of immediate help you would accord a victim of a bike accident and anyone involved in any other accident.
EU member countries include first aid as part of the training regimen of any driver and that’s because of the importance of such skills when an accident occurs.
If you aren’t from the UE or have no particular training on how to handle an accident case, these is what you should do:
First, attend to the victim
Immediately after the crash and the rider appears injured, don’t spare a moment, thinking about who was responsible or how the accident happened.
Attend to the possibly injured biker in any way possible, including helping him/her stay calm. You can administer any form of first aid ONLY if the cyclist has suffered threatening injuries or if you are a specialist.
For mild injuries, especially those that would demand bandaging like broken bones, wait for professional help. While at it, reassure the victim that all’s well and professional help is on the way.
You must also try to remain calm and assess the situation as you make rational and informed decisions…
Continue reading the article and learn more about being involved in an accident on LifeIsAnEpisode.com.