Cyclist Found Fully At Fault For Collision With Vehicle

Reasons for judgement were released today by the BC Supreme Court, Victoria Registry, addressing the issue of fault following a serious collision between a cyclist and a vehicle.
In today’s case (Ireland v. McKnight) the Plaintiff was a doctor who was involved in a “career-ending road traffic incident” in 2007.   The Plaintiff was travelling southbound on his bicycle on Henderson Road.  At the same time the Defendant passed the Plaintiff in the same direction of travel.  At this time a collision between the bicycle and vehicle occurred.
The Court heard competing theories about how the collision occurred but ultimately found that the Plaintiff drove into the vehicle and was fully responsible for the crash.  In dismissing the lawsuit Mr. Justice Wilson provided the following reasons:

[22]         I find the defendants’ theory of how contact occurred to be the more plausible.

[23]         I find the front wheel of the bike contacted the right rear quarter panel of the car, behind the right rear wheel well.

[24]         If, as the plaintiff argues, the car was on a collision course with the bike, or failed to adjust sufficiently to avoid a collision course, then I find that the right front corner of the car would have struck the bike.  The evidence does not support such a finding.

[25]         I conclude that the plaintiff moved the bike to the left, concurrently with the turn of head in that direction.  But for the plaintiff moving the bike, there would have been no contact between the bike and the car.

[26]         I find the defendant driver passed the bike at a safe distance, and, on the evidence, that at least three-quarters of the car length had passed the bike before contact occurred.

[27]         In result, I find the defendant driver not liable for the incident.  It follows that the plaintiff’s claim against the defendant driver, pursuant to s. 86 of the Motor Vehicle Act, fails.