Brenda Mitchell, lead Solicitor and founder of Motorcycle Law Scotland, discusses Civil Law in relation to common motorcycle accidents and compensation claims.

1. Presenta(on
to
EDAM
April
28th
2016
Colinton
Bowling
Club
-­‐
Edinburgh
Civil
Law
and
motorcycle
collisions

2. Where
do
you
stand?

3. Uphill
struggle
|
Experts
on
your
side

4. Adam
Wagner

5. Adam
Wagner

6. Adam
Wagner
v
Thomas
Grant
and
another
• 60%
Driver
• 40%
Motorcyclist

7. Law
Reform
(Contributory
Negligence)
Act
1945
• “where
any
person
suffers
damage
as
the
result
partly
of
his
own
fault
and
partly
of
the
fault
of
any
other
person
or
persons,
a
claim
in
respect
of
that
damage
shall
not
be
defeated
by
reason
of
the
fault
of
the
person
suffering
the
damage,
but
the
damages
recoverable
in
respect
thereof
shall
be
reduced
to
such
extent
as
the
court
thinks
just
and
equitable
having
regard
to
the
claimant's
share
in
the
responsibility.”

8. Motorcycle
Law
case
1

9. Motorcycle
Law
case
2

10. NFU
v
Adam
Russell

11. NFU
v
Adam
Russell

12. Lady
Stacey
Driver
100%
to
blame
“I
have
come
to
the
view
that
the
accident
happened
because
Mr
Swinton
pulled
out
onto
the
main
road
once
the
pursuer
had
come
round
the
corner
and
should
have
been
visible
to
Mr
Swinton,
had
he
taken
due
care.”
“On
the
maber
of
contributory
negligence,
I
am
not
persuaded
that
there
is
evidence
to
show
that
the
pursuer
was
guilty
of
contributory
negligence.”

13. 5
most
common
accidents
! !
Bends on rural roads
!
Filtering
Collisions at junctions
! !
Overtaking Loss of control

14. Filtering

15. Pell
v
Moseley
Driver
-­‐
50%
Motorcyclist
-­‐
50%

16. Davis
v
Schrogin
2006
Driver
–
100%
at
fault

17. Motorcycle
Law
case
–
Mr
T
Driver
–
100%
at
fault

18. Woodham
v
Turner
(2012)

19. Woodham
v
Turner
Motorcyclist
–
50%
Coach
driver
-­‐
50%

20. Road
surface
defects

21. Overbanding
and
loose
gravel

22. Diesel
Spill

23. Travel
in
Europe

24. What
to
do
in
the
event
of
an
accident?
• STOP
at
the
scene
if
the
accident
has
caused
injury,
or
if
there’s
damage
to
a
vehicle,
property
or
street
furniture
(such
as
a
street
lamp).
If
possible,
alert
oncoming
traffic.
• CONTACT
the
police
(999
from
a
landline
or
112
from
a
mobile)
if
anyone
is
injured,
the
collision
is
causing
a
hazard
or
someone
has
leg
the
scene
without
exchanging
details.
• OBTAIN
the
registra(on
number(s)
of
vehicle(s)
involved.
• PHOTOGRAPH
the
scene
of
the
accident
and
note
road
number/specific
loca(on.
Photograph
any
road
surface
defect
that
may
have
caused
the
accident.

25. What
if
it
happens
to
you?
• It’s
your
choice,
NOT
your
insurer’s
• Motorcycle
Law
Scotland’s
Legal
Expense
Protec(on
To register for FREE, go to www.motorcycle-lep.co.uk
or pick up a card tonight and activate it.

26. www.motorcyclelawscotland.co.uk
www.facebook.com/motorcyclelaw
www.twitter.com/motorcyclelaw1