Bob
25th October 2006, 00:26
A biker who was knocked off when a man pushing a pedal bike stepped into his path is calling on all cyclists to take out insurance.
Rik Relph, 48 from Histon in Cambridgeshire broke two ribs and has been left with a bill for more than £600 to repair his Triumph Sprint ST. Mr Relph said "When the lights turned to green I slowly moved off, but suddenly someone walked in front of me pushing a bike. I slammed the breaks on and the only way I could avoid careering into him was to lay the bike down. I picked my bike up and turned round to get his details but he had already gone."
Mr Relph thinks pedal cyclists should have insurance to cover incidents like this. He said "I personally feel cyclists should not be allowed on the roads unless they have insurance. They don't pay road tax or insurance, need an MOT, or even have to pass a test - but to ride a motorbike you need to go through tremendous rigorous training."
Paul Watters, head of roads policy at the AA Motoring Trust, said "It is often brought up but it seems to raise more issues. It is a difficult dilemma because you could ask, should all road users be insured? If cyclists had to be insured would it mean pedestrians had to take out insurance in case they stepped out in front of a car?”
Rik Relph, 48 from Histon in Cambridgeshire broke two ribs and has been left with a bill for more than £600 to repair his Triumph Sprint ST. Mr Relph said "When the lights turned to green I slowly moved off, but suddenly someone walked in front of me pushing a bike. I slammed the breaks on and the only way I could avoid careering into him was to lay the bike down. I picked my bike up and turned round to get his details but he had already gone."
Mr Relph thinks pedal cyclists should have insurance to cover incidents like this. He said "I personally feel cyclists should not be allowed on the roads unless they have insurance. They don't pay road tax or insurance, need an MOT, or even have to pass a test - but to ride a motorbike you need to go through tremendous rigorous training."
Paul Watters, head of roads policy at the AA Motoring Trust, said "It is often brought up but it seems to raise more issues. It is a difficult dilemma because you could ask, should all road users be insured? If cyclists had to be insured would it mean pedestrians had to take out insurance in case they stepped out in front of a car?”