Report mud on the road etc

[gringogordo]

Hi,

I came off at a pretty low speed on a fairly minor road today - absolutely covered in mud. Low speed but a fair amount of damage. While I waited for recovery (1.5 hours) a cyclist stopped to say he'd come off the night before and just as my bike was strapped up to a trailer another bike had a spill in the same bit of mud (same for him - basically okay but lots of minor damage) . My bill (Blade, Swindon as I wasn't sure where to go at the time but may regret going to a dealership if I end up paying the whole lot!) came out about £1500 (estimate obvs).

So.....

I've rung the police about a dangerous road, they were sympathetically disinterested and forwarded me on to Wiltshire council who recorded the incident and are going to send me a claims pack. Blade were talking bout sueing the farmer which strikes me as a bit more tricky...

Any advice for a next step?

By the way the road was very minor between Dauntsy and Little Somerford near a place called Loaded Gunn racing. I don't know if it's worth posting a warning on here, seems a bit pointless as it's been reported now but if I'm being a lazy selfish piece of s**t as usual let me know and I'll post a warning somewhere!

[DC]

Sorry to hear that Ben , hopefully the fact that it happened to another motorcyclist and a cyclist at the same place , will strengthen your case .

[Badger-Roy]

Iv heard that your insurance can make a claim against the farmer but I expect it would a along drawn out case as insurance claims normally are. Speak to your insurance company and let them deal with it, im sure they charge you enough after all.

[wiltshire builders]

Really sorry to hear that.
I hate it when people generalise, but all farmers are selfish bast@rds.
No other industry would get away with such dangerous negligence on the roads. I've had arguments with farmers and their response is always "What do you expect us to do, clean it up?"
Uh.....yes I do actually. The same as the rest of us have to.
On Monday night I called 101 to report diesel spread over the road at the bottom of Lowden hill.
They took it pretty seriously and said they would send a car to check on it and notify the Highways agency.
The next day they had spread cement dust over it, so action was taken.
Hope you get it sorted.

[Wes]

Mud causes skidding and is therefore dangerous and a nuisance. Highways Act 1980 Section 161 states: “If a person, without lawful authority or excuse, deposits anything whatsoever on a highway in consequence of which a user of the highway is injured or endangered, that person is guilty of an offence”.




Mud on the roads: Advice for farmers using public highways ...



https://www.nottinghamshire.police.uk/advice/mud

Sorry to hear that Ben, this is taken directly from a police website.

[Badger-Roy]

Worth a read as it shows farmers are responsible for RTAs caused by mud left on roads.
https://www.wrighthassall.co.uk/know...able-mud-road/

[wheelers]

I brought this subject up last year and was told by a forum member, what do you expect living in a rural area!!
back In the 1920-30s my father and his family lived in Avon Lane near Tytherton and worked for the local farmer. one night there was a knock on the door and the village bobby reported 'mud on the road' which came from a local field. Grandfather said to his boys, they had to clean it up or they would be out of the tied house.

the problem with rural areas is who is to blame ?, there is probably 3 or 4 farmers who run up and down the road, or even one of their workers. could also be a local horse owner who has run their horsebox/4x4 out of the fields.
when we were organising mx events we were responsible for road cleaning, the problem is when is the road clear?

sorry to hear of your accident but , you might have to take the insurance hit yourself. if you reported it to the police could they provide you with a crime number? did you take photos or get written statements?

[gringogordo]

I have photo's of the road and phone numbers for 2 witnesses but to be honest I think you are right Wheelers. I will look into it but the longer I think about it it just doesn't seem very practical to find & sue the farmer ? This was the bike shops advice and I think it is a bit unrealistic tbh. I have contacted the council and they are going to send a claim form. I have a cyclist witness who says he came off his bike & rang 101 the night before and the number of a guy on a motorbike that went over 1.5 hours after me so some of that should count for something but it's a pretty new situation for me so I don't know. I think I'm best ringing insurance and asking them how I can co-ordinate the claim with a claim from the council. I think 3 of us ion such short succession makes it a real claim but if the council don't pay up & pursue the farmer I'm not sure I have the energy to try and chase down the farmer. Although it is pretty bad 3 incidents came to light within 1.5 to 2 hours...

[gringogordo]

Hmm that is interesting though Wes and Badgerboy and this is what the guy in Blade was probably talking about.
I'm kind of hoping the council may take up some of the leg work though as I'm not sure how easy it would be to prove which farmer etc.

[wiltshire builders]

Why can't you get your insurance to chase the farmer?
It's what you pay them for and will be recorded as a non fault claim.