Whilst driving on the M1 the other day, my car hit a piece of metal that was lying on the inside lane. We couldn't get out of the lane in time due to traffic, but we slowed down, and the lower speed helped to prevent anything dangerous happening.
However, the car now has a scraped tyre, and damage to the wheel rim. Looks like we need new tyres and wheels now.
Is anyone (Highways Agency?) liable for leaving dangerous debris in the road, or do we just have to put it down to one of those things?
Thanks,
Charles
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Is anyone (Highways Agency?) liable for leaving dangerous debris in the road, or do we just have to put it down to one of those things?
Did the Highways Agency put the debris on the road?
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Did they make the potholes in the road?
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Adam
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I hit aht looked like a scaffold bracket on the motorway some months back and smashed the tray under my Megane. No mechanical damage thankfully.
You've just got to put it down to bad luck I'm afraid.
The Highways Agency certainly can't be held liable for all detritus on the roads!
MC
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Whilst there is an obligation under Highways Act 1980 on LA to maintain roads there is nothing about objects falling on the carriageway apart from their power to order a person who deposits anything likely to cause a nuisance to remove and also Highways have a duty in cases of obstruction caused by snow, landslides or another cause to remove same.
Unless it can be shown that they were aware of the obstruction and took no action to remove then its down to you and not them.IMHO
DVD
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Thanks for your advice - going to take it on the chin then...
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>Thanks for your advice - going to take it on the chin then...
Luckily you didnt.
few stories about road debris being thrown through windscreens and the mayhem and injury that results.
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A couple of days ago I was in a similar situation in a 40 zone with a guy so close to me I couldn't see his lights. Block of wood in road, I swerved and missed it, he didn't hit the block and ended up stopping to inspect the damage. Another good reason to leave a decent gap.
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And thanks to the moron who lost an entire GENERATOR off the back of his truck in the roadworks between 12 and 13 clockwise on the M25 on Friday 20th, I really appreciated the hold up...
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Last year,one of my work colleagues driving in his three week old A-class hit a trucks exhaust system lying on the M25.It caused £1200 of damage.OUCH !.
Many years ago whilst driving my father hit a suitcase lying in the road.That also damaged his car.The suitcase was full of clothes(think it fell off a holidaymakers roof rack!).Unfortunately their was no identification on the case or inside it.
With reference to your question.I dont think they can be liable for what falls off other vehicles.Only if the vehicle depositing the debris can be identified could anything be done.
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I was driving along the motorway when the spare wheen from the back of a landrover suddenly appeared infront of me. As it was rush hour, there and I was in the middle lane, there was no opportunity to swerve.
Although I braked I went over with one almightly bang and looked at the rear view mirror expecting to see at least my exhaust behind me.
I drove home very apprehensively and took it into the garage the next day. The damage? Slightly bent engine mounting bracket! Lucky.
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Do recommended braking distances and the two-second rule start to make sense to everyone now?
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ND if you can maintain an adequate braking distance and follow the two second rule on a crowded M25 then I applaud you...
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I hit a rock on the M4 elevated section a few years ago, it knocked out the sump of the company Vectra I had at the time, oil light came on after 10 secs, there is no hard shoulder however I was heading out of London towards Heston i.e. down hill so I switched off and coasted unile the end of the elevated section where the hard shoulder starts thus saving the engine and avoiding being a feature on the traffic buletins for the next two hours
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I didn't say it was always possible, but it doesn't stop it making sense.
I suppose that, arguably, it is always possible as long as everyone else does it. Selfish lot that we are, it doesn't work that way.
C'est la vie.
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"...M4 elevated section...there is no hard shoulder however I was heading out of London towards Heston i.e. down hill so I switched off and coasted unile the end of the elevated section where the hard shoulder starts thus saving the engine and avoiding being a feature on the traffic buletins for the next two hours"
That must happen a lot there. I did exactly the same in a Sierra Sapphire when the fuel pump packed up. Was towed to Heston services, then out of it into ?Hounslow? through an interesting back route to the services.
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If I remember rightly the old bill used to run a cop car along there with big cushioned over rider things on the front. If you broke down they came up behind you and pushed you off to the three lane part with a hard shoulder.
Re the heston services and exit route, for years heston services (specially westbound) had a service road that was used by all who knew of it as an unoficial "junction" It came out in Cranford lane if I remember, East bound came out on Heston Road.
Both long closed with special gates now tho I think.
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Yep RF, plod used to do that. I used to work at 1000 Great West Road (it was Wang at the time, now empty again I think) and my window overlooked the elevated section virtually at road level. Regularly saw that happening.
Also recall the junction at the front of the building was one of the pilot sites for traffic light cameras. In the winter it was like a strobe light, flashing all the time.
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Been a while since Ive been through the dartford tunnel but don't/didnt the authorities have a couple of land rovers with big rubber bumbers on them to push disabled vehicles out of the tunnel?
WTM
BTW, I dont mind the suicide merchant cutting right in front of me on motorways. I just look on them as mobile crumple zones...
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Ah yes Wang, remember them well. Is it true that the customer service department was call "Wang Care"?
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Yep. And we drove around in Wang cars.
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Also recall the junction at the front of the building was one of the pilot sites for traffic light cameras. In the winter it was like a strobe light, flashing all the time.
Likewise the Gatso at the beginning of the elevated was a test site before they were legally enforcable, the story goes that the camera recorded a Porche doing 127mph 24 hours before it became legal to enforce speed via cameras, likewise the camera on Twickenham Bridge was also a test site, they caught a bike doing over 100mph past the camera and he got around the corner on the south side of the bridge 100 yards later.
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Ah yes but that was a good corner. Constant radius, wide, you could use a lot of road without going on the other side. The inside approach, through the apex and out again was clean of any drains, studs, manholes.
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Ah yes but that was a good corner.
>>Ah yes in the old days many a bod went straight on.
After first putting shields on the street lights of the minor street, they then blocked off the street followed by putting in a barrier that redirected the cars so they hit the telephone box.
Eventually the very comprehensive barrier was installed.
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