I've hit a mirror

[RedBike]

There was a big queue of traffic (about a mile long) and I was being naughty and undertaking on the inside. Suddenly one of the cars pulls over for no apparent reason. I had nowhere to go and there was no way a heavily ladden bike was going to stop quickly downhill in the wet. I bounced down the side of his car hitting his mirror.

Thankfully by the time I hit the car i wasn't going too quickly and there's no damage to me or the bike and his mirror is still intact.

Was this my fault or the drivers?

I know I shouldn't of been undertaking; but then again the driver shouldn't of tried to deliberately block my path !

 

[tdr1nka]

His then yours, in that order.

Driver obviously didn't use the near side mirror before moving, I guess he/she didn't indicate.

I am very wary of going down the inside left for the above reason because you're in the gutter with the p*nct*r* cr*p and for the solid fact of when an incident like this occurs you have nowhere to go except into the curb or railings.
If traffic is at stand still you are generally best to filter on the outside.

Do you say the driver did this deliberately?

 

[J4CKO]

If he did deliberately try to block you then he is a total cock, however there is the old line we trot out, from the Highway code about overtaking is the responsibility of the person doing the overtake to do it safely, so I suspect that its your fault given you were going up the inside and passing other vehicles, we cannot start quoting the Highway code all self righteous then someone passes too close, cuts in, left hooks etc and then ignore it if we do it.

But if there was any deliberate action then you may consider yourself partially excused.

love it, not even a week on here and I am passing judgment on fellow forum members, I am dead shy in person (well not really)

 

[cheadle hulme]

Sounds like your fault in these circumstances. Glad you're OK though.

I assume you stopped and apologised?

I clipped a mirror a few months back (at some speed). I pulled over after the lights in case the driver wanted a word, driver sailed past. I caught him at the next lights and tried to apologise (regular commute, high chance of meeting again). Driver hadn't even noticed - had the radio on.

 

[Joe24]

Done it before Went through a gap that was too small, and just taped it. Was going slow enough, so i stopped andput my foot down. No damage done, said sorry, left the driver abit shocked and carried on
Lesson learned, the gap was too small.
I was going bewteen 2 lanes of traffic.
I am careful when going down the right, and dont even go dow the left. On the right you never know if a driver is going to move over to push you in the path of another car coming the other way, or if the driver coming the other way is going to move over. Or even if the car is going to just do a U turn.
Makes me sound paranoid

 

[BentMikey]

+1 to tdr1nka.

 

[Archie]

I did this filtering between two lanes up to a red light. Misjudging a narrow gap, I hit a taxi's side mirror in the outside lane, pushing it 90 degrees out. I apologised and snapped the mirror back to it's proper position, whilst my mates in the van behind pissed themselves (I was coming back from footy at the time) and the driver tried to look pissed off whilst trying not to laugh himself.

 

[RedBike]

I'm afraid it did appear as though the driver deliberately moved over to prevent me from passing. Espeshially as the reaction of the driver / passengers to having the car hit was to jeer / laugh.

I didn't appologise. I was ready to go back to have another attempt at knocking the mirror off!

It wasn't until I had got home and calmed down that I reaslised that acutally this might of been my fault.

 

[BentMikey]

Someone back on C+ mentioned that knocking mirrors downwards usually breaks them off, whilst forwards/backwards just causes them to fold. Apparently! And I'm not suggesting you do this.

 

[Arch]

As I understand it, filtering down the middle or left isn't actually illegal, so I'd say it was poor judgment perhaps in terms of the space you had and perhaps going to fast to emergency stop in time, but not 'wrong' in a malicious sense.

If he pulled into your path on purpose, that ought to be dangerous driving, or something. If not on purpose, he wasn't payng due care and attention.

So I'd say his fault, but you could have avoided it by not being there...

 

[HLaB]

I've only hit a mirror once, cycling up Dundas St in a blizard (well an Edinburgh blizard) or was it a monsoon , I clipped it with my elbow but it was very low speed. I felt guilty about it especially when I turne around and it was a nice youn girl driving. As she was stuck in traffic I felt duty bound to go and fix it for her.

Back to the OP, if they deliberately pulled in on you I'd say it was their fault. Maybe you could of avoided it but I'm sure you didn't deliberately take that action they did. PS there's nothing wrong with undertaking grid locked traffic, it just isn't always advisable.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

I know I shouldn't of been undertaking; but then again the driver shouldn't of tried to deliberately block my path !

Shouldn't have, Redbike.

 

[Twenty Inch]

I've hit a mirror, deliberately, after some appallingly bad and aggressive driving. It was a very satisfying moment's cycling.

 

[Cab]

I know I shouldn't of been undertaking; but then again the driver shouldn't of tried to deliberately block my path !

How do you know he did it for that reason?

 

[byegad]

I gave up undertaking after an incident like yours. A driver was determined to block my progress and made a late move forcing me to bunny hop the curb to avoid being crushed into the kerb. The next night he did it again, firms van, distinctive enough to know it again.

After that it was a few days before I saw him again and as I passed him on the right he tried to put me into the oncoming lane! Fortunately I changed jobs just after that so didn't see him again, but he certainly had an issue with being overtaken by a bike.