Letters:Compensation fund can help victims of cyclists

For many years insurers have sold home contents policies where public liability cover is not offered or is often an extra paid-for ­option.
One reader thinks its time for a compulsory compensation fundOne reader thinks its time for a compulsory compensation fund
One reader thinks its time for a compulsory compensation fund

It is the same with before-an-accident insurance, to cover the cost of employing an expert to make a claim for you (Letters, May 5).

When a cyclist rides along a pavement it is always a possibility that a serious accident will occur to a pedestrian. To have any chance of obtaining compensation it would be necessary for the ­cyclist to stop, then to be correctly identified, and hopefully have insurance cover.

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As insurance is not compulsory, and if the cyclist doesn’t have any assets, as is likely to be the case with a young ­person, there is little likelihood of ­obtaining compensation.

Most public liability insurance ­policies do not pay out where the loss or damage to the victim is caused by a criminal act, so it is possible it may not be covered in any event.

Unfortunately, we don’t live in a ­perfect world. Not everyone does the right thing, has insurance cover or sufficient assets to pay a claim or can afford the financial risks of court proceedings. If that was the case, then pedestrians wouldn’t be living in fear of cyclists on pavements.

Government-released figures show that the number of pedestrians being killed as a result of accidents with cyclists has doubled over the past 10 years. Proper action is required to stop cyclist believing that pavements are an acceptable route.

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Perhaps it is time to have a compulsory compensation fund, much the same as with all other road users. A small proportion of the tens of millions of pounds could be diverted from cycling measures to pay all the innocent victims.

Alastair Murray, Elliot Road, Edinburgh.