A CAMPAIGN to make motorists automatically liable to pay compensation to cyclists or other vulnerable road users following a crash has been backed by Scotland's trade unions.

Cycle campaigners want to bring Scotland into line with Europe, where most countries operate a policy of presumed liability, because it will accelerate damages payouts for injured parties.

Under the arrangement, the burden of proof for any damage or injury shifts from the vulnerable road user to the more powerful, which in most situations of a road traffic collision involving a cyclist is the motorist’s insurance company.

However, it would also make a cyclist who struck a pedestrian automatically liable for any injury caused, while cyclists who were at fault for a collision as a result of running a red light or other traffic violations would not receive compensation.

The Herald: Cycle law campaigner Brenda MitchellCycle law campaigner Brenda Mitchell

The Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) has become the latest organisation to support a change in the law after agreeing at its annual congress to make the fight for presumed liability part of its official policy alongside calls for other cycle safety measures, including extended cycle routes and employer initiatives.

Dave Moxham, Deputy General Secretary of the STUC, said: “Cycling plays an important part of the union movement’s past and present, specifically through the National Clarion Cycling Club, but also because we believe cycling is important to our health and wellbeing. Creating a healthier Scotland depends on improving levels of physical activity, while cycling also contributes to reducing carbon emissions and is better for the environment.

“Health professionals see the consequences of car traffic accidents and the life changing injuries that can be sustained. Safe cycling must be a national priority to encourage physical activity and prevent accidents.

“By introducing presumed liability for vulnerable road users to Scots Civil Law we can begin to affect how people view their responsibilities as road users. It is embedded in the cycling cultures in Europe, where cycling is far safer. It seems strangely stubborn of our Government to continue to ignore this simple and sensible course of action.

“We want to encourage more people to take up cycling but we need to ensure that they do so in a safe environment.”

Campaigners say a change in the law will foster a "culture of respect" on the roads and end a David and Goliath legal situation that can leave those injured and bereaved battling for years to receive fair compensation.

Brenda Mitchell, a cycling accident lawyer who has been spearheading the Road Share campaign for presumed liability in Scotland for three years, said it would "rectify a system that is out of date and inherently unjust".

She added: “When it comes to road traffic collisions where a cyclist is hit by a car, or indeed where a pedestrian is knocked over by a cyclist, we have an archaic system where the odds are frequently stacked against the vulnerable and receiving compensation quickly and fairly in many cases is impossible without resort to litigation which adds to the distress of those who have been injured through no fault of their own."