NC Court of Appeals Rules Against Bicyclist
A recent decision by the North Carolina Court of Appeals went against a bicyclist who was injured in an Orange County, North Carolina accident. The case was not handled by our firm but it presents some interesting and worthwhile issues for bicyclists in North Carolina.
The accident at issue in the case involved a bicyclists who was struck by the passenger-side mirror of a passing motorists. Apparently, the impact broke the mirror but did not knock the bicyclist off the bike. Following the impact, the bicyclist spoke to the car driver who had stopped following the accident. The impact with the mirror left the bicyclist with bruises and an alleged back problem. The case went to trial and the jury found in favor of the car driver. The bicyclist asked the Court of Appeals to overturn the jury’s decision and determine that the car driver was negligent as a matter of law for passing too closely. The Court of Appeals declined to overturn the verdict and determined that there was conflicting evidence on the question of whether the car safely passed the bicyclist.
This case is interesting because North Carolina law requires a passing vehicle to provide at least two feet between the vehicle and the bicyclist. Certainly, in this case it could be argued that there was not at least two feet between the car and the bicyclist – otherwise the accident would not have happened. Yet, the Court of Appeals left the decision to the jury which sided with the car driver.
The lesson for bicyclists in North Carolina is that merely being hit by a car does not automatically mean the car is at fault. I personally disagree with this ruling but we must all now be more careful when riding our bicycles on the roadways of North Carolina.
