Contributory Negligence Reform

Maybe some good news on this matter. The Washcycle reposted a WAMU report that Mary Cheh is going to reintroduce the bill to change the D.C. contributory negligence law. Trial lawyers, insurance reps and bike advocates are all on board, according to the tweet. Councilmember Cheh was a key reason why the push to change the law was delayed last year. But now she appears to be leading the charge to improve the law. Potentially very good news for cyclists, pedestrians and law-abiding drivers in D.C., although the details of the new bill haven’t been reported yet.

https://twitter.com/MartinDiCaro/status/552161196988973056

#Break: @marycheh to intro bill to change D.C. contributory neg law; trial lawyers, insurance reps, bike advocates on board. @wamu885news

Posted at 9:54 AM today.

http://wamu.org/news/15/01/05/a_new_year_a_new_attempt_to_change_dcs_bike_crash_liability_law

With the new year comes another new plan to change a D.C. law that now prevents bike riders and pedestrians from receiving compensation when injured in a traffic crash.

Right now — under what is called “contributory negligence” — if you’re hit by a car while you’re walking or riding a bike you would then suffer another blow from the so-called “knock-out rule.” If you’re deemed even somewhat at fault in the crash, your case to receive compensation would be knocked out.

D.C. Council member Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3) has been trying to change that, but bills debated in recent years have died after insurance companies expressed their opposition. But now Cheh will try again.

“This bill that I am going to introduce tomorrow simply says that if a cyclist or a pedestrian is involved in an accident with a car, then nothing will prevent the cyclist or the pedestrian from recovering unless their negligence is more than — more than — the automobile driver,” Cheh says.

Shane Farthing, who leads the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, says Cheh’s proposal could help injured cyclists with relatively small claims.

“A few thousand dollars in damages from an ER trip, an ambulance trip and some bike damage, and it’s not a large enough amount that they are able to secure an attorney to protect their rights, so everything gets done through the insurance company,” Farthing says.

The D.C. Insurance Federation apparently supports Cheh’s effort to reach a compromise, but says it’s not the right approach.

In a statement sent by the DCIF’s executive director, Wayne E. McOwen, the organization says solutions “including potential revisions to the traffic laws and an education initiative aimed at encouraging a more respectful coexistence among cyclists and motorists” are “potentially more effective.”

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Seems like the insurance group isn’t really on board. What revisions to the traffic laws is the DCIF talking about? Getting all cyclists off the roads?

Education initiative? Is this code for “scofflaw cyclist re-education”? We already have driver’s education but it doesn’t seem to help in a lot of cases. Maybe the majority of drivers understand the rules, but if 10 or 15 percent don’t, that’s a very big problem. The group wants to minimize liability. Are they going to play the blame game here and say that cyclists (and pedestrians) cause most of their injuries? (Will they ignore the fact that in many crashes, the driver is the only witness, either because other parties are deceased or incapacitated? Many of us are familiar with the case where a truck driver intentionally rammed a cyclist, picked up the bike and threw it over his truck, and then claimed to the police that the cyclist was at fault. The police cited the cyclist and refused to look at the cyclist’s helmet cam video. After the video was uploaded to YouTube and it was clear that the driver was very aggressive and clearly at fault, the police backtracked. How often does this type of scenario play out like this?)

Although a bill to modify negligence law in DC was reintroduced this year, it has been stuck in the Judiciary Committee since January.

WABA posted about the situation yesterday, along with a link to contact Councilmember McDuffie, Chair of the Judiciary Committee. If you are a DC voter and you are concerned about the delay, contact Councilmember McDuffie.

http://www.waba.org/blog/2015/10/wheres-that-crash-victims-bill/

Another thread on the forum re contributory negligence in DC: http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?7362-Contributory-Negligence