ICBC faults cyclists who say they were hit by cars

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Several cyclists have appear forward to CTV News questioning the way ICBC decides who is at fault in collisions concerning vehicles and bikes.

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Alicia Sharp was strike while crossing Clark Push applying the dedicated East 10th Avenue bike route.

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“I was crossing an intersection and I got hit by a car or truck that ran a crimson light-weight,” said Sharp. “Unfortunately, mainly because I left on a stretcher, I wasn’t ready to get the details of the auto that strike me or any witnesses that might have found it.”

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Sharp was pregnant at the time and is incredibly grateful neither she nor her unborn newborn suffered severe injuries in the crash — but she could not get away entirely unscathed, for the reason that there could be a economical strike.

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The driver claims Sharp blew by means of a cease indicator on her bicycle and entered Clark Travel, a busy truck route, in opposition to the light.

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“I understand that the only evidence they have is a police report that was inconclusive and conflicting statements between myself and the driver,” said Sharp. “They’re locating me at fault for the accident irrespective of only getting my statement versus the driver’s statement. They explained I was at fault because I was crossing from a stop signal.”

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She’s not on the hook for something however, but ICBC has advised her she could be billed for hurt to the motor vehicle that strike her.

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Some thing equivalent occurred to Ben Chick again in 2016, soon after he was strike by a auto even though using his bike.

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“I experienced a damaged elbow, a bruised retina, a bunch of glass in my back, a significant concussion,” Chick reported of his accidents.

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“And then I got a bill in the mail not to very long following from ICBC for $13,000 damage on the person’s car.”

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It took him four a long time to pay off the debt and he is nevertheless living with bodily impacts from the crash.

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A different bicycle owner also finds himself on the hook for injury to the car that hit him.

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Ben Bolliger took to Twitter to complain about the predicament he finds himself in after getting strike by a vehicle whilst using on a Vancouver bicycle route in July.

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He claimed he experienced serious injuries, which include damaged bones, and that he will never ever once more have comprehensive assortment of movement in his suitable arm.

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He’s experienced medical procedures and carries on to go to physiotherapy sessions and rehab.

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Bolliger suggests the car that him ran by means of a quit indicator, but ICBC found him at fault, and final 7 days he received a monthly bill for $3,700 to address repairs to the hood and windshield of the automobile that hit him.

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“It financially rewards ICBC to find fault against cyclists,” mentioned Joel Zanatta, Bolliger’s attorney.

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“They’re riding a bike mainly because they’ve made a option and they are currently being struck by automobiles. They’re not staying compensated, which is stunning. And then in specified instances they’re getting a bill in the mail. It is appalling.”

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In a assertion to CTV News, ICBC mentioned it comprehensively investigates accidents ahead of deciding who is at fault.

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“In assessing any assert, we review all of the evidence presented to us in purchase to appear to a good selection,” the insurance plan company claimed. “This would contain studies from the motorists associated, witness statements and law enforcement reports if obtainable.”

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Zanatta, founder of a firm named The Biking Attorney, normally takes concern with the way ICBC bargains with cyclists.

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“They’re undertaking it in a fully discriminatory vogue,” he reported. “They’re routinely obtaining fault with cyclists where none existed and they are preserving their motorists.”