Can I claim cost of driving if I can’t ride
In my accident claim my solicitor tells me I can’t claim for the future use of a car as opposed to my motorcycle. If I didn’t have the accident, I would have continued to use my bike most of the time, not the car. The car is far more expensive to run than my bike. Over the next 20 or so years of commuting this is really going to add up to a lot of money. Why can’t I claim this?
Jim Donnelly, Leeds
Answer
You have not said but I assume that you are no longer able or willing to ride due to the accident. This could be due to physical factors preventing you from being able to ride or psychological factors doing so. If physical, this is straightforward to prove with medical evidence. If psychological, the most common reason is something called a phobic anxiety disorder, the phobia being riding a bike. Psychologists usually recommend a course of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and it works most of the time in my experience. But if that doesn’t work it is generally accepted that there is a valid claim for the increased cost of running a car as compared to a bike. You are right – over the years this head of claim can really add up. I would suggest your solicitor arranges to send you to the appropriate medical experts and then takes it from there.
Download
