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1st Post so be Gentle with Me ? Advice on Temporary Traffic Management

by Denny@60
Tue, Sep 07, 2010 00:13
4

Dear All

I have a confession I am an occasional cyclist more for exercise to keep fit but have recently had a collision with a house door canopy whilst driving and towing my caravan ??

Maybe this is not the correct forum but hopefully a friendly reader might direct me to a more suitable website forum ?.

Whilst towing my caravan for in warranty repairs in an unfamiliar area I had to follow a diversion put in place by the local council due to a road closure. This forced me down a single carriageway two way road and then an immediate right turn into a street where cars where parked against houses due to the narrow width of the street. This forced an immediate transfer to the opposite side of the road into the oncoming traffic. Unfortunately as I began to pass the parked vehicles another vehicle began to approach from the opposite direction blocking my route. After failing to persuade the oncoming driver to reverse as I was towing my caravan I decided to pull over into a large gap in the parked cars close to the houses. I signaled the oncoming driver to proceed and began to pull out from my temporary location. Unfortunately the back end of my caravan came into contact with the projecting door canopy pulling half of it down and damaging my caravan.
I felt that if temporary traffic lights had been in use where the cars where parked this accident would not have happened. Needless to say there was little thought given to Cyclists or pedestrian access. I decided yo write to the local council to ask if I could be compensated due to their lack of proper traffic management. As you might expect they fobbed me off explaining that the highways department had managed the road works in accordance with the Safety of Street works and Road Works code of Practice 2010 which I have since found out doesn't exist only a consultation document which may not be adopted.
Has any forum member had any success in obtaining recompense after such an event ? as I now face the prospect of losing two no claims bonuses one from my caravan insurance and one from my car insurance as each covers different parts of the accident.
Hope someone can advise
Sorry for the ramble !

Many Thanks in advance

Denny

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4 comments

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Denny@60 | 14 years ago
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Hi All

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my plea for help so quickly, it was very kind of you.

Yes I think I am clutching at straws a bit but it was very annoying on the day !

I wish I had got out and offered to reverse the car for the oncoming driver.

I'll have another go at the council and let you know if I get any joy !

Thanks once again and I'll will definitely be visiting this forum again in the future.

Denny

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STATO | 14 years ago
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TBH i dont think you have a case if it was a normal road (just obstructed by parked cars) unless it was a road narrowed by painted parking bays? in which case you might be able to prove road wasnt a suitable choice for a diversion, its a bit of a stretch tho. As above may be worth talking to a specialist or even your insurance company (its in their benefit to prove your not at fault as then they wont have to pay out!)

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timlennon | 14 years ago
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Yeah, sounds like you need to weigh up the cost of finding and employing a good traffic lawyer, and the cost of your no-claims bonuses.

Does either policy include legal cover? That's got to be worth a try, at least ...

At least you're not like the Ferrari driving idiot delivering his children at school who thinks he doesn't need to indicate while weaving around both lanes!

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dave atkinson | 14 years ago
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dunno really, you might be better off asking on a caravanning forum? i have to say though that i doubt you'd get much success: unless the council have actually been legally negligent in some demonstrable way, you'll get short shrift from the legal system in my experience.

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