Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

Government set to open consultation on new causing death by dangerous cycling offence

Offence would carry same penalty as causing death by dangerous driving - but campaigners say government should focus on motorists who kill

The government is reportedly set to consult on a proposed new law of causing death by dangerous cycling, with an announcement expected this week according to The Times.

The offence would carry the same penalty as applies to causing death by dangerous driving, currently a maximum of 14 years’ imprisonment, although the government wants to increase that to a maximum sentence of life in jail.

That legislation applies only to motor vehicles, which means that prosecutors have to rely on other legislation to charge a cyclist with an offence.

It was the case of Charlie Alliston, found guilty last year of having caused the death of pedestrian Kim Briggs, that led transport minister Jesse Norman to order a cycle safety review.

> Government announces cycle safety review in wake of Alliston case

Alliston was acquitted of manslaughter, but found guilty of causing bodily harm through wanton and furious driving and sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment in a young offenders institution.

The offence he was convicted of falls under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and originally applied to drivers of horses and carts, and the case saw widespread calls for the law to be reformed.

The cycle safety review was launched after former Lewisham MP Heidi Alexander – now London’s deputy mayor for transport – raised the issue at Prime Minister’s Question Time on behalf of her constituent, Mrs Briggs’ widower Matthew.

In March this year, Laura Thomas of solicitors Birketts published a study commissioned by the Department for Transport in which she said there was “a persuasive case for legislative change to tackle the issue of dangerous and careless cycling that causes serious injury or death.”

She continued: “The gap between manslaughter and the historic offence of wanton and furious driving is too wide; particularly when, as far back as the 1950s it was recognised that juries are slow to convict in ‘motor manslaughter’ cases, let alone cases involving cyclists.

“The use of a historic offence aimed at carriage driving does not fit with the modern approach to road safety,” she added.

Cycling campaigners have urged the government to focus on tackling dangerous drivers instead,

In 2016, 448 pedestrians were killed on British roads but cyclists were involved in only three of those cases.

Over the past decade, motorists have been involved in 99.4 per cent of all pedestrian fatalities.

Where cases do result in a driver being prosecuted, often they will be charged with causing death by careless driving which carries a maximum penalty of five years in jail.

Even when a causing death by dangerous driving charge is brought, often the driver will be cleared and convicted of the less serious offence.

London Cycling Campaign’s infrastructure campaigner, Simon Munk, told The Times that prioritising tackling dangerous cycling made little sense,

He said: “The number of lives that this could save and the number of people that this could possibly affect positively makes it very strange that the government has chosen to prioritise this over other changes to the way the justice system handles road danger. It is completely not the priority.

“From a statistical and road danger reduction point of view, this should be way down the list of priorities.

“Which is not to say we should just ignore people who cycle dangerously, it’s simply to say that the idea should surely be that you do the big things first then the little things later.

“The big things are heavy goods vehicles which are disproportionately dangerous on our roads and enforcement of driver behaviour,” he added.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

Add new comment

25 comments

Avatar
Yorkshire wallet | 6 years ago
0 likes

Emil minty the feral kid. Sadly I know that without google. Love that film. When the apocalypse comes I'll be ready willing to wage war for the precious juice.

Probably choose something economical than a supercharged v8 though.

Avatar
Yorkshire wallet | 6 years ago
0 likes

The solution to all this perhaps not to ride a fixie with no brakes other than locking your rear end.

Having a front brake would have taken with off the political menu so you've actually got Charlie boy to thank for this.

You ride a normal bike with normal brakes under 30mph and you'll never get charged with anything if a ped zombie walks in front of you.

Avatar
brooksby replied to Yorkshire wallet | 6 years ago
4 likes

Yorkshire wallet wrote:

You ride a normal bike with normal brakes under 30mph and you'll never get charged with anything if a ped zombie walks in front of you.

In the current and developing climate, I find that hard to believe...

Avatar
vonhelmet | 6 years ago
1 like

I suppose it would depend on whether the lorry had an illegal lack of brakes. Regardless of whether Alliston’s lack of brakes had anything to do with Briggs’ death, once that was known there was no way he was getting off.

Avatar
Housecathst replied to vonhelmet | 6 years ago
3 likes

vonhelmet wrote:

I suppose it would depend on whether the lorry had an illegal lack of brakes. Regardless of whether Alliston’s lack brakes had anything to do with Briggs’ death, once that was known there was no way he was getting off.

or perhaps the hgv was traveling over the speed limit, which like not have a brake on a fixed it’s illegal and has a direct effect on your braking distance but is regular over looked or discounted when pedestrians are killed by motorists because the jury of motorists all brake the speed limit too.

Avatar
Awavey replied to vonhelmet | 6 years ago
1 like

vonhelmet wrote:

I suppose it would depend on whether the lorry had an illegal lack of brakes. Regardless of whether Alliston’s lack of brakes had anything to do with Briggs’ death, once that was known there was no way he was getting off.

 

albeit veering off topic,and I dont have the precise figures to quote on this, but isnt it the case when the police do one of those occasional joint task force stop all lorries for roadside checks & red diesel, the scary thing is they do find more than the odd one (and Im sure its in the region of 75% they stop they issue tickets for) with defective brakes or illegal tyres, or overweight loads,fault tacographs...etc etc  and yet they only stop a fraction.

Avatar
maviczap | 6 years ago
1 like

Meanwhile the government launches a consultation to see how we can get more people out of their cars and walking and cycling!

City dwellers slowly being suffocated by theit own car fumes.

The cycle campaingec hit the nail on the head, when she said it's time to change our culture of car dominance, or something along those lines.

Avatar
davel | 6 years ago
4 likes

More peds are KSId solely on the pavement by drivers than by cyclists *anywhere*. It is illegal to drive on the pavement.

But, yeah, the problem is cyclists, and almost black swan-like events like Charlie Alliston, not the moral panic caused by disinformation peddled by the Mail and its ilk. 

Jesse Norman and Heidi Alexander: what a despicable pair of knee-jerking, evidence-eschewing, rag-chasing, spineless cunts. 

Avatar
maviczap | 6 years ago
0 likes

Think the cycling campaigner they had on was like a rabbit caught in the headlights, and really could have been a bit more forceful I pointing out how many deaths are caused by cyclists every year, as opposed to deaths caused by car drivers and to the pathetic sentences handed out.

Avatar
Mungecrundle | 6 years ago
2 likes

Does seem like an utterly pointless exercise. 3 pedestrians killed in collisions with cyclists in 2016? Presumably not all the result of reckless cycling either, and how many convictions result in the current maximum sentence? I'm going to guess Zero.

Opportunity cost of dealing with other more urgent issues and another opportunity for some sections of the media to demonise cycling and cyclists.

Avatar
burtthebike | 6 years ago
5 likes

The BBC are featuring the consultation on dangerous cycling this morning on R4, but they didn't mention the consultation on safer cycling though.  They go into detail about how many pedestrians were killed and injured in collisions with cyclists in 2016, presumably because that was the worst year they could find, and without putting the figures into context by comparing it with the number killed and injured by motor vehicles.

The BBC is committed to fair and balanced reporting but this never happens with cycling.  Never.

Avatar
maviczap replied to burtthebike | 6 years ago
3 likes

burtthebike wrote:

The BBC is committed to fair and balanced reporting but this never happens with cycling.  Never.

Just watching BBC breakfast news covering this story, it's so bad I can't write anything same or sensible, it's so one sided.

Good old air head Sally Nugent, couldn't even get it right when she asked Kim Briggs husband how long she'd been a cyclist! Poor bloke 

Avatar
Hirsute replied to burtthebike | 6 years ago
0 likes

burtthebike wrote:

They go into detail about how many pedestrians were killed and injured in collisions with cyclists in 2016, presumably because that was the worst year they could find

I think simply becasue that is the latest full year available.

Avatar
oldstrath | 6 years ago
3 likes

Utterly pointless overreaction to one sad death and the bizarre campaign of vengeance waged by the dead woman's widow, aided by the Daily Fascist. Hope he's proud of his great achievement. Worrying though that his anti-cyclist MP is now the person responsible for transport in London. 

Avatar
Butty replied to oldstrath | 6 years ago
1 like

oldstrath wrote:

Utterly pointless overreaction to one sad death and the bizarre campaign of vengeance waged by the dead woman's widow, aided by the Daily Fascist. Hope he's proud of his great achievement. Worrying though that his anti-cyclist MP is now the person responsible for transport in London. 

I do wonder who he would have blamed if she walked out in front of an HGV that couldn't stop in time?

Perhaps a voiciferous campaign to firm up existing laws and stronger judicial sentancing, that would benefit far more road users, would now be on the cards?

 

How much will this new Law cost to enact against its true benefit to society?

Avatar
Brightspark | 6 years ago
3 likes

The report by Laura Thomas is quite interesting and the recomendation she has is very simple.

It of interest as it looks into the reasons as to why we have the current seperation of causing death/ injury by motor vehicle and evertything else comes under manslauter/ Murder. In my opinion the charge of furious cycling against Aliston should have been manslaughter. But then I am not the CPS who made such a song and dance about the "old and archaic law" which by the way could be used to prosecute people who cause death and injury by opening car doors without taking proper care.

The reason why we have the current set up is that juries have to consider that if they were in the same situation as the acussed then would their decision be any different. They would also have consider the sentence that would be given. That is why death and injury charges against motorists are so soft.

The recomendation, is quite simple, that is to remove from the current law the word "motor". This would then make the law applicable to all vehicles not just motor vehicles. So cycles and mobility scooters would be included as potentially would horse carts skateboards and hover boots.

The potential risk (or it may be an advantage) is that this may be applied to other laws and then cycles would be treated as any other road vehicle.

However this is the nasty party running the government and Heidi and the Stupid Woman have an agenda on "Killer Cyclists". So I bet my dinner money that what comes out of this will not be the simple solution but something more nasty and vindictive.

Here is the link to the report.

Avatar
Jitensha Oni replied to Brightspark | 6 years ago
4 likes

Brightspark wrote:

The report by Laura Thomas is quite interesting and the recomendation she has is very simple.

It of interest as it looks into the reasons as to why we have the current seperation of causing death/ injury by motor vehicle and evertything else comes under manslauter/ Murder. In my opinion the charge of furious cycling against Aliston should have been manslaughter. But then I am not the CPS who made such a song and dance about the "old and archaic law" which by the way could be used to prosecute people who cause death and injury by opening car doors without taking proper care.

The reason why we have the current set up is that juries have to consider that if they were in the same situation as the acussed then would their decision be any different. They would also have consider the sentence that would be given. That is why death and injury charges against motorists are so soft.

The recomendation, is quite simple, that is to remove from the current law the word "motor". This would then make the law applicable to all vehicles not just motor vehicles. So cycles and mobility scooters would be included as potentially would horse carts skateboards and hover boots.

The potential risk (or it may be an advantage) is that this may be applied to other laws and then cycles would be treated as any other road vehicle.

However this is the nasty party running the government and Heidi and the Stupid Woman have an agenda on "Killer Cyclists". So I bet my dinner money that what comes out of this will not be the simple solution but something more nasty and vindictive.

Here is the link to the report.

“In my opinion the charge of furious cycling against Alliston should have been manslaughter.” Manslaughter was one of the charges, and he was found not guilty of that.

“ remove from the current law the word "motor”.  In whch case I say bring it on, then the reckless rider can excuse themselves with reasons such as  “the sun was in my eyes” or even “I didn’t see them” as in the Michael Mason case /s. In other words, sentences for reckless cycling should be the same as those for reckless driving. If this means sentences for reckless driving become more severe, then go for it, I say.

However, my concern is that, if a dangerous/careless cycling law is passed, we will have juries composed largely of non-cyclists deciding what is the standard of a “competent and careful cyclist”. The cycling mode share stats suggest that 97% of potential jurors would have no idea of this from actually cycling  - unlike, say, a jury in a reckless driving case. Sounds like a surefire recipe for miscarriages of justice against cyclists to me.

Avatar
HLaB | 6 years ago
0 likes

Avatar
StuInNorway | 6 years ago
2 likes

Surely the simplest and quickest change is to simply change the definition of a vehicle in terms of "driving" to include all transport vehicles,  bikes, pedal ricksahws, electric assist bikes, and current motorised transport. That would also mean that speed limits apply to bikes too (not that many places cyclists regularly go over them except in a few royal parks maybe), adds the option for drunk in charge of a bike, etc etc. Then the same requirement of proof would be required in any case brought. . . .  as in a number of cases even with a number plate, clear view of the driver, the hire company "didn't know who was driving.

An update to increase the penalties for failing to provide driver's details, and include making the person a hire car is rented to liable unless they provide other details to clear up that loophole.

 

Avatar
spen replied to StuInNorway | 6 years ago
0 likes

StuInNorway wrote:

Surely the simplest and quickest change is to simply change the definition of a vehicle in terms of "driving" to include all transport vehicles,  bikes, pedal ricksahws, electric assist bikes, and current motorised transport. That would also mean that speed limits apply to bikes too (not that many places cyclists regularly go over them except in a few royal parks maybe), adds the option for drunk in charge of a bike, etc etc. Then the same requirement of proof would be required in any case brought. . . .  as in a number of cases even with a number plate, clear view of the driver, the hire company "didn't know who was driving.

An update to increase the penalties for failing to provide driver's details, and include making the person a hire car is rented to liable unless they provide other details to clear up that loophole.

 

 

Isn't cycling already included in the definition of driving, the law for going through a red light only referee to drivers.  Drunk in charge of a bike is already an offence under the 1872 Licencing Act.  Surely there needs to be a death by careless cycling offence so a cyclist can get the same slap on the wrist as a driver, it's only fair after all.

Avatar
Hirsute replied to StuInNorway | 6 years ago
0 likes

StuInNorway wrote:

An update to increase the penalties for failing to provide driver's details, and include making the person a hire car is rented to liable unless they provide other details to clear up that loophole.

The hiree is liable though.

The problem is where 2 people are on the list of drivers and claim to be unaware https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-35472617

perhaps that is what you are thinking of ?

Avatar
Rapha Nadal | 6 years ago
0 likes

LOL

Avatar
burtthebike | 6 years ago
5 likes

And now the real reason they had the much delayed consultation on cycling and safety, so that they could introduce this law.  As Brooksby says, just a waste of time and money.

What's the betting that this would be enacted before anything in the cycling safety consulation?  Odds of 1000:1 wouldn't seem unlikely.

Avatar
brooksby replied to burtthebike | 6 years ago
2 likes

burtthebike wrote:

And now the real reason they had the much delayed consultation on cycling and safety, so that they could introduce this law.  As Brooksby says, just a waste of time and money.

What's the betting that this would be enacted before anything in the cycling safety consulation?  Odds of 1000:1 wouldn't seem unlikely.

Exactly: not a review on cycling safety as much as on road safety, and not in the sense of making the roads safer but in the sense of being seen to punish eeeevil cyclists (both of them!) and not in any way continue the mythical War on Motorists (and it is mythical, you know).

Avatar
brooksby | 6 years ago
9 likes

Well, gosh, I hope Heidi’s proud of herself... Talk about being seen to do something: utter waste of time and money.

Latest Comments