Was I driving without due care and attention by filtering?

I’ve recently been sent a court summons for driving without due care and attention. I was riding on a 30mph road overtaking cars which were stationary at a red light when a car pulled out of the queue and knocked me off my bike. I was not riding over the speed limit. I am bringing a claim for my injuries and the other driver’s insurer admitted liability straight away. However, my solicitor dealing with that says he can’t assist me with the criminal case? What should I do?

Vikram, by e-mail

Answer

Driving without due care and attention is otherwise known as careless driving, which is when the standard of driving falls below the standard expected of a reasonably prudent driver. Driving that falls well below the standard expected is labelled as dangerous driving.

Filtering is legal and, in itself, is not evidence of careless driving. I note that you refer to “overtaking” rather than filtering – the difference between filtering and overtaking is based on the comparative speeds of the bike versus the queue of traffic. You say that you were not speeding, but if you were passing the cars at 30mph a criminal court may well find to be excessive when the rest of the traffic was stationary. You should speak to a motoring offences solicitor for advice on what to do and give him a copy of the admission of civil liability. Being found guilty of a motor offence in these circumstances is unlikely to prevent you from receiving compensation in your injury claim.