Diary of a Road Accident Victim Part VII: The Police Response

The earlier Diary Parts I - VI tell the story of the events following the time that I was knocked off my bike by a careless driver in March. She realised her error, was very apologetic, and provided details at the scene, as did a witness who was driving behind me. I wasn't badly hurt beyond cuts and bruises, but my clothes were ruined. I made 5 attempts to report it to the police, a process riddled with stumbling blocks.However, the driver's insurers were more helpful, eventually awarding me £600 to replace my damaged clothes. I thought that was it. However, there is a slight footnote.

Firstly, I had an unexpected letter from the Dept for Work and Pensions, to say that any kind of benefits I had claimed as a result of the accident will need to be claimed back from the insurer of the offender. Assuming that the insurer of the offender didn’t tell the DWP about the accident, they must have been notified by the police, which makes the next part even stranger.

I had two letters from the police - one to say that they were closing the case as none of the four attempts to report the accident were successful (quickly rectified with a few more phone calls and emails); and then the final letter below, which was what I expected. They hadn’t had time to contact the independent witness, or trace other witnesses, so wouldn’t be taking the matter any further.

Whilst I recognise that the police are woefully over-stretched, so can’t follow up on every injured cyclist in their jurisdiction, I (slightly selfishly) don’t think this is good enough. Some forces do manage it, and even follow up on common “non-accidents offenses” like drink driving and using handheld mobile phones.  Some forces (notably West Midlands) take this to something of an extreme, and even fine drivers for overtaking too close to a bicycle. 
Although rather harsh on drivers, this has been a measurably successful approach. Amongst other initiatives, it has led to a 20% cut in road accident victims who are killed or seriously injured. Extended across the 1,800 or so people killed on British Roads every year, this would on average save a life every day; way more than are killed in London stabbings and terrorist attacks combined.

In the same week that I received my letter, our local police force attended in person at 2 separate incidents to investigate cats being killed by foxes in my street. There must be some reprioritisation that could be done. The alternative is that we continue to accept that the lives of pedestrians and cyclists are less important to society than the convenience or pleasure of drivers.