Now Andy Bevan wants an early-warning system for road users
Avid cyclist Andy Bevan, who was seriously injured after his bike tire caught a rut in Clevedon, near Bristol(Image: Andy Bevan)
A cyclist who ‘cheated death’ when his front wheel got stuck in a rutted pothole is suing the council after discovering that another cyclist had suffered the same fate just weeks before.
Andy Bevan suffered serious multiple injuries when he went over the handlebars on Castle Road in Clevedon, six weeks after the ‘invisible crack’ was reported to North Somerset Council.
As he lay on the road with a fractured neck, a retired GP rushed to his aid and told him another cyclist had done the exact same thing on the same spot just six weeks earlier, and had complained to the council.
But the local authority told his lawyer they went out to inspect the road after that first complaint and didn’t think it needed repairing.
Now, the former police detective is suing the council and calling for an early-warning system to be put in place to alert people to hazardous road surfaces.
Andy suffered a long list of injuries when he was gently cycling down the hill in Clevedon and suddenly was catapulted over the handlebars to land on his head.
He suffered a T1 transverse process fracture to his neck, fractured collarbone, nine broken ribs, collapsed lung and fractures to his pelvis, as well as a concussion.
The paramedics who arrived said his helmet had saved his life. “I paid a heavy price but at least I cheated death,” he said.
“The most disturbing thing is the indiscriminate nature of my accident and that, because of the inactivity by those who are supposed to keep our roads safe, there was nothing I personally could have done to avoid what happened.
“My front wheel must have got stuck in one of the extensive cracks in the road but the area of disrepair was invisible on the approach,” he added.
Andy, from Portishead, said he’d ridden that route many times before, but hadn’t for a few months.
“It really was the stuff of nightmares for cyclists. Like every cyclist, I’ve had my fair share of bruising accidents and this was by far the most painful one of them all but what really hurt is that it was all so avoidable,” he added.
While he was lying injured, a retired doctor came to his aid. “I’ll be eternally grateful to the local resident, a retired GP who saw my accident, rushed to my aid, called the emergency services and told me that someone else had recently come a cropper in the same spot,” Andy said.
Avid cyclist Andy Bevan, who was seriously injured after his bike tire caught a rut in Clevedon, near Bristol(Image: Andy Bevan)
“The public-spirited resident had complained to the council about the state of the road as a result which is very community-minded.
“Thanks to the resident I was able to get in contact with the other cyclist who confirmed he had reported his accident to the council and had also made a complaint.
“It left me gobsmacked but I just wish they’d acted promptly to spare me a lot of grief and I just hope some good can come from my accident with a review of how local authorities react to reports of accidents.”
Andy said he thinks he was lucky. “I was taken by ambulance to hospital where the doctor said that my cycle helmet had saved my life so I felt that I was only alive to tell the tale thanks to wearing the appropriate gear,” he said.
“All in all, I count myself fortunate to have come out alive but what’s happened to me shows that every cyclist should wear a helmet because that cliché about not knowing what’s round the corner really is true,.”
Andy is now a self-employed outdoor instructor and international mountain leader, who found that a simple cycle in Clevedon proved more dangerous than any climbing adventure.
He couldn’t work for eight months after the accident, which happened in September 2023, and had to cancel work trips including taking a group up Mount Kilimanjaro, and another up South America’s highest mountain, Aconcagua.
Avid cyclist Andy Bevan, who was seriously injured after his bike tire caught a rut in Clevedon, near Bristol(Image: Andy Bevan)
He is now taking legal action against North Somerset Council, because they had been told about the dangerous crack in the road before.
“The local authority had ample warning and my accident was one of those that was just waiting to happen because another cyclist had alerted the powers-that-be to the pothole weeks before but, as far as I can tell, they failed to act promptly,” he said.
Enable Law solicitor Laura Williamson is taking up Andy’s case. “Andy is quite rightly seeking damages but he is also hoping that his claim will focus the minds of local authorities nationwide to make our roads safer for cyclists,” she explained.
“We sent a letter of claim to the council who stated that they had inspected the road after the previous accident and while repairs were due, the road was not classed as dangerous so the repairs were not regarded as urgent.
“Soon after Andy’s accident warning signs were put up and the road was repaired but this was too late to spare Andy a horrific ordeal which had a huge impact on his health and professional activities. We are currently preparing court proceedings and quantifying Andy’s losses,” she added.
Solicitor Laura Williamson, from Enable Law(Image: Enable Law)
Andy wants wider action so that, if a report is made of a dangerous spot for cyclists, warning signs are put up straight away, before the pothole is fixed.
“While I recognise it’s almost impossible to fix every pothole overnight, the danger had been reported so as a minimum they could have put up a sign about it to give cyclists a heads-up,” he added.
A spokesperson from North Somerset Council said: “We comply with our statutory duty to maintain our roads to a safe condition. We respond to all reports of potholes and other defects and complete repairs wherever deemed necessary. It wouldn’t be appropriate for us to comment on individual incidents and potential claims.”
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