Six-month suspended sentence for van driver who hauled triathlete off her bike

If there is the admission of guilt and the court have ordered £5k compensation, can a civil action be taken to sue for the loss of earnings and prize money? I do not know the regulations but was just wondering.

Dreadful sentencing

So let me see, the next time a pedestrian walks up past his van stuck in traffic he's okay to assault them,yes?

Or if he had assaulted the owner of the uncontrolled dog, that's fine too?

Don't think it's likely, but assault a cyclist lawfully conducting themselves on the road and it's fine.

And the government think tougher laws for cyclists are the answer......

The victim has a right to be dissatisfied with the sentence- this was an appalling assault with no justification whatsoever.

Sadly, this is simply yet another example of an aggressive,egomaniac driver completely losing the plot because he encountered a fast-paced cyclist whose riding did not conform to the stereotype  he expects from a person on a bike. . I'm sure we have all experienced this type of driver, they are the 'must get in front' or 'left hook' specialists who expect a cyclist to ride @ 10mph in the gutter and to simply give way to all four wheeled traffic whatever the rights and wrongs of the situation. In their eyes, you are a cyclist therefore ,by definition, you have NO rights as a road user and if you try and  assert your rights, either  by the manner of your riding or,when challenged,  by any kind of verbal response, then you are  deserving of the greatest contempt imaginable- I honestly believe this is the deluded and psychopathic mentality of a small minority of motorists towards cyclists.

Anyway, he'll have to fix a few more toilets and unblock a few more sinks now to make up the £5k compensation he owes- probably a sh*t plumber anyway -  no doubt  he's  one of the 'shiny  van brigade' with big lettering on the side and  wears company logo designer workwear that never gets dirty- looks really 'pro' but still gets leaks and call backs all the time 'cos he's still not got the hang of it after years in the trade. These guys are ten a penny, I can vouch for that.

Let's  just hope the courts in Yorkshire are more robust at chasing non-payers than they are in other parts of the country.The overall debt of unpaid court fines in the country currently stands at something like £500 million..

Don't worry about waiting for sunshine, if they don't have hi viz or a helmet or they were cycling recklessly (more than 15mph or more than a couple of feet from the kerb) you're all good.

If you've got a bit of cash saved up, don't even worry about this; get a hire car, have a few beers, forget who was driving it, reverse if you must...

The £5000 is significant, but it's no compensation for jail, just as Graham has said. I'd like to say I'm surprised, however, I'm afraid I'm not I am, however, once again appalled that someone has been allowed to walk free after hurting someone, essentially because they were on a bicycle.

If I ever wanted to murder someone, I'd wait until they were on a bike and run them over when the sun is low.

So a £5000 fine is now meaningful compensation that avoids a jail term. What planet do our judges live on, whiplash compensation claims can be a few thousand, break somebody’s bones and affect their livelihood should be way more. Whatever happened to taking account of victim impact statements.

I'm off out to the pub. Just so I'm clear, if someone on a bar stool is taking what I deem too much room at the bar, can I haul them to the floor? If it's a lady, should I make sure she's ugly?