Cyclists: Get out of a hole

Cyclists can now highlight road defects - to warn others as well as initiate action, reports David Prosser

One minute you're pedalling along perfectly happily, keeping a watchful eye out for pedestrians, motorists and even other cyclists. The next thing you know, you're lying in the road nursing cuts and grazes, or a more serious injury, and wondering how you're going to get your damaged bike home. What took you out? That large hole in the tarmac that came out of nowhere.

Potholes are the scourge of cyclists and motorists alike. But while roads have to be damaged pretty seriously to do a car much harm - or drivers have to be travelling too fast - a pothole can be a serious hazard for cyclists. The worst-case scenario is that you get thrown off your bike and land in the path of oncoming traffic.

In fact, cycling organisations get as many calls asking for advice on claiming compensation about a pothole-related accident as they do about collisions with motorists. So much so that the Cyclists' Touring Club (CTC), the national cyclists' organisation, has launched two new internet sites designed to warn other road-users about potholes, and get local councils to do something about them.

"Using our system at www.fill thathole.org.uk, you can zoom into any road in the UK, mark the location of the defect, and let the local authority know about it, which then has a duty to act," explains Yannick Read of the CTC. "It takes two minutes to use, and it's possible to include photos, measurements and other information, which other people will be able to see."

The CTC's second new site, at www.clearthattrail.org.uk, works in a similar fashion but enables cyclists to report off-road obstructions. CTC director Kevin Mayne adds: "Potholes and other road defects are more than just a nuisance; they're a danger to cyclists."

It's a worthy initiative, but what happens if the warnings from other cyclists come too late to help you? If you suffer an accident, it makes sense to report it, in the hope that the pothole is repaired before fellow cyclists follow your lead. And if the crash has caused you injury, or damaged your bike, it may be possible to bring a legal claim for compensation.

Reporting the accident is the first stage. Make sure you have notes of the exact location of the pothole - the road name and the building or house adjacent to the site. If you can take photographs of the scene, all the better, particularly if you can find a way of illustrating the size of the pothole - stick a mobile phone or a credit card into the hole, to give some idea of scale.

It's also worth making a record of any markings around the pothole. A painted line around it, for example, may signify that the local authority is aware of the damage. And take details of any witnesses to the accident. Get names, addresses and phone numbers, and ask if they would be prepared to give a short statement on what they saw, should you need it.

Finally, make exhaustive records of damage to you and your bike. Photos of the bike will help, as will a report from a bike shop. If you see a doctor or local accident and emergency department, make sure they keep a record of the fact that you have been injured by the accident.

Not everyone wants to file a claim for compensation but if you think there's any chance you might do so, all this record-making is even more important. Return to the scene a week later, say, and you may discover the pothole has been filled in, depriving your legal advisers of vital evidence in pursuing your case.

Mark Bowman, a solicitor who specialises in cycle-related legal matters, has recently published an extensive article on how to sue a local authority over a pothole in London Cyclist, the magazine of the London Cycling Campaign.

But he is at pains to point out that compensation is by no means a certainty. "Being involved in a crash involving a pothole does not guarantee you can successfully pursue a claim for personal injury," he says. "As a matter of policy, the courts have decided it would be unreasonable for local authorities to be responsible and have to insure against every accident that occurs as a result of a pothole."

Taking legal advice will be crucial to your chances of success - at the least, a solicitor with experience of cycling cases will be able to tell you whether it is even worth proceeding with a claim. Cycling organisations can put you in touch with specialist solicitors and may even be able to give you legal help themselves. But always bear in mind that court action costs money, especially if you end up liable for the other side's costs.

Local authorities' standard defence is that they have a reasonable system of road inspection and repair. A court will consider whether that system is appropriate, given the road on which your accident occurred and whether the authority has lived up to the maintenance standards road-users might expect.