Yoga teacher hit by bike after walking into road while on phone WINS compensation as judge rules: ‘Cyclists must be prepared’
A YOGA teacher knocked out by a cyclist when she stepped into the road while staring at her phone is set to win thousands in compensation.
Gemma Brushett, 28, was hit by Robert Hazeldean on a busy crossing as he rode home through central London in 2015.
Both were knocked unconsciousness in the collision - with Gemma suffering a minor head injury and Hazeldean ending up with cuts.
The pedestrian launched a bid for compensation blaming him for the accident - despite a court hearing she was staring at her phone when she walked on to the road.
Hazeldean is now liable to pay out because "cyclists must be prepared at all times for people to behave in unexpected ways", Judge Shanti Mauger said.
She added: "Mr Hazeldean did fall below the level to be expected of a reasonably competent cyclist in that he did proceed when the road was not completely clear."
CYCLIST 'CALM AND REASONABLE'
Central London County Court heard Hazeldean had come through a green traffic light, and had sounded a loud airhorn attached to his bike - as well as shouting, swerving and braking.
But he still ploughed into the yoga teacher at 15mph after she suddenly walked out from the crowded pavement into the road during rush hour.
The judge accepted the cyclist was a "calm and reasonable road user" and that Gemma "was looking at her phone" when she walked into the road in front of him.
She had "panicked" and tried to get back on the traffic island but the cyclist had swerved in the same direction.
Lawyers argued Gemma, who also works for a finance firm, couldn't remember anything about the crash due to "post traumatic amnesia".
Cycling - the law
UP to 130 people were seriously injured in accidents involving cyclists last year and four were killed on Britain's roads.
And more than ten pedestrians suffer life threatening injuries every month when they are hit by people on bicycles.
As a result, the government is looking at ways to make the roads safer for pedestrians and are urgently reviewing whether new laws should be brought in to cover dangerous cycling.
The current Victorian legislation was originally used deal with reckless handling of horses but there is no cycling equivalent to the offence of causing death by dangerous driving.
Cycling without due care and attention or reasonable consideration for other road users carries a £1,000 maximum fine, while dangerous cycling could land someone with a £2,500 fine.
But causing injury by cycling furiously has a two year maximum sentence and falls under the legislation from 1861.
Pedestrians have a duty to take care of their own safety and in civil law, but even if they step onto a road without looking first and into the path of an oncoming car, the pedestrian may still consider a claim for compensation against the driver.
A driver can claim compensation from the pedestrian in respect of vehicle damage or other injury or losses the driver suffers but they rarely win.
Three witnesses told cops she was "not looking where she was going"and said the "cyclist was not at fault", while on branded Hazeldean "arrogant and reckless".
The judge said the garden designer was "courteous and mild-mannered" and "gave every impression of being a calm and reasonable road user".
But she ruled Gemma deserves a 50/50 payout, which means she will only get half of the full value of her claim.
'CYCLISTS MUST BE PREPARED'
The judge said: "When I stand back and ask 'how did the accident happen?' it seems to me that Mr Hazeldean owed a duty to other road users to drive with reasonable care and skill.
"Even where a motorist or cyclist had the right of way, pedestrians who are established on the road have right of way.
"Ms Brushett must clearly have equal responsibility if she is crossing the road without looking - and if she is looking at her phone, even more so.
"But cyclists must be prepared at all times for people to behave in unexpected ways."
The case will return to court at a later date for costs and damages figures to be fixed.
The case is the latest to throw up issues of cyclists on the roads, with cyclist Charlie Alliston, 20, jailed for 18 months for knocking over and killing a woman as he sped through east London.
Kim Briggs, 44, was crossing the street when she was struck by Alliston's bike, which didn't have any brakes, with her husband now calling for a "radical change" in cycling culture.
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Roger Geffen, Cycling UK policy director, said: “It’s worth remembering that serious injuries to pedestrians from collisions involving cyclists are rare, and that the cyclist can also be seriously injured when they happen too.
“From media reports, it seems odd that the judge attributed responsibility on a 50/50 basis given their own reported comments on the case.
"However this case highlights why Cycling UK gives all our members third party insurance, and recommends regular cyclists taken out similar policies to protect them from this sort of situation.”
