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Worst of the compensation culture

13

Comments

  • #62
    AnonoBoy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,559 ✭✭✭✭AnonoBoy


    paky wrote: »
    i totally agree but you also must take into account the degree in which it rains in this country. if everybody had to disengage from using his/her bicycle once it rained then i would think it would defeat the purpose in cycling in this country.

    I've cycled in the rain and been able to see where I'm going. It's not too often that it would be so torrential that it would stop you from being safely able to view the road.


  • #63
    token101
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,050 ✭✭✭token101


    paky wrote: »
    i totally agree but you also must take into account the degree in which it rains in this country. if everybody had to disengage from using his/her bicycle once it rained then i would think it would defeat the purpose in cycling in this country.

    FFS! I suppose you could sue...the rain :pac:


  • #64
    Show Time
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,637 ✭✭✭Show Time


    policarp wrote: »
    Ambulance chasing solicitors are just as bad IMO. . .
    A good friend of mine had a nasty fall a few years back and could have taken a case against the city council but as she was in no permanent pain decided not to. A lawyer who spoke to my friend tried everything in his power to get my friend to put in a claim but all he did was put my friend off dealing with the ambulance chasing con artists.

    A lot of the compo culture can be laid on the doorstep of this fine profession.


  • #65
    Canis Lupus
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,880 ✭✭✭Canis Lupus


    Gyalist wrote: »
    It's usually the insurance companies who settle small claims rather than run up huge legal bills. There was a student who claimed that she slipped on the stairs in my shop and we had the whole "incident" on CCTV. I was prepared to fight it but the insurance company settled with the her solicitor and I was only informed after the fact.

    Last company I was in we often settled with someone rather than proceed to court even though we'd hands down win because it was more expensive (both in monetary terms and the 'cost' for our solicitor to be away from her core role) to defend it than just settle.


  • #66
    44leto
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,137 ✭✭✭44leto


    AnonoBoy wrote: »
    Common sense would be for people not to put signs in stupid places. But common sense would also be for people to look where they're going and if the conditions prevent them from seeing what's ahead then reducing their speed or not cycling at all.

    Frankly I'm surprised you're still alive if this is your attitude to road safety.

    I have to say as a cyclist, you are bent forward and sometimes in a strong head wind or rain you do put your head down lower. Its the nature of cycling.

    To put a low level sign in a cycling lane is dangerous. Its not common sense danger, the person putting it there thinks cyclists like pedestrians and drivers have a full view forward. We do but that at times that is restricted as in conditions above.

    It is something the council workers should be aware of.


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  • #67
    RichieC
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,331 ✭✭✭RichieC


    I watched a show about the scalding coffee in macdonalds case and to my surprise found it was actually a good case taken to court rather than the mockery it was made out to be.


  • #68
    Pompey Magnus
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,406 ✭✭✭Pompey Magnus


    paky wrote: »
    i totally agree but you also must take into account the degree in which it rains in this country. if everybody had to disengage from using his/her bicycle once it rained then i would think it would defeat the purpose in cycling in this country.

    Damn right, many's the time I have been caught driving in incredibly heavy downpours where visibility was almost nil but instead of pulling over or slowing down significantly in case I hit something ahead I just bomb on regardless because if everyone was to be sensible in their car once it rained then it would defeat the purpose of driving in this country.


  • #69
    mikemac1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 12,395 ✭✭✭✭mikemac1


    44leto wrote: »
    LOL
    That reminds me of "Only fools and horses" when Trigger banged his head of a "mind your head sign", he sued his old school for not been able to read.

    They were always claiming on that show :)

    Grandad was in the parachute regiment so he was trained how to roll and how to break a fall. Like jockeys do

    He would go around and leap down the cellar stairs in pubs and put in a claim


  • #70
    Dyr
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 23,246 ✭✭✭✭Dyr


    mikemac1 wrote: »
    They were always claiming on that show :)

    Grandad was in the parachute regiment so he was trained how to roll and how to break a fall. Like jockeys do

    He would go around and leap down the cellar stairs in pubs and put in a claim

    He was in the navy though :P


  • #71
    AnonoBoy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,559 ✭✭✭✭AnonoBoy


    44leto wrote: »
    I have to say as a cyclist, you are bent forward and sometimes in a strong head wind or rain you do put your head down lower. Its the nature of cycling.

    Surely though a check of the road ahead every so often is vital if cycling at speed. I don't think the hairdresser ran out and dropped the sign in front of him so unless it was just around a corner it's something that should be spotted.

    I mean there's all sorts of obstructions that need to be watched out for, nasty potholes, fallen branches etc.


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  • #72
    mikemac1
    Closed Accounts Posts: 12,395 ✭✭✭✭mikemac1


    That was Uncle Albert who was in the navy


  • #73
    Robbo
    Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 10,662 Mod ✭✭✭✭Robbo


    RichieC wrote: »
    I watched a show about the scalding coffee in macdonalds case and to my surprise found it was actually a good case taken to court rather than the mockery it was made out to be.
    It is one of the great enduring urban myths trotted out that it was completely vexatious or opened up a new area of liability.

    Ronald Mac was in the habit of settling those cases long before Stella Liebeck ended up with second degree burns.


  • #74
    AnonoBoy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,559 ✭✭✭✭AnonoBoy


    RichieC wrote: »
    I watched a show about the scalding coffee in macdonalds case and to my surprise found it was actually a good case taken to court rather than the mockery it was made out to be.

    That old chestnut does get thrown up time and again. People at parties who bring it up really hate me when I detail the exact nature of the case and why it was a valid claim. I'm a real dickhead.


  • #75
    Dyr
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 23,246 ✭✭✭✭Dyr


    tbh the more cyclists we take out of commission the safer this land will be.


  • #76
    paky
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 2,138 ✭✭✭paky


    AnonoBoy wrote: »
    I've cycled in the rain and been able to see where I'm going. It's not too often that it would be so torrential that it would stop you from being safely able to view the road.

    is that your opinion or is it facts of the issue in question?
    Pompey Magnus wrote: »
    Damn right, many's the time I have been caught driving in incredibly heavy downpours where visibility was almost nil but instead of pulling over or slowing down significantly in case I hit something ahead I just bomb on regardless because if everyone was to be sensible in their car once it rained then it would defeat the purpose of driving in this country.

    this is an accident involving a bicycle not a car


  • #77
    AnonoBoy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,559 ✭✭✭✭AnonoBoy


    paky wrote: »
    is that your opinion or is it facts of the issue in question?

    It's fact. I work for the meteorology-cycling department. I can also tell you what wind speed is too much for the average cyclist and how much big hailstones hurt when they get you in the eye while on a Raleigh bike doing 22 mph.


    Seriously though if the conditions are so bad that you cannot see what's ahead of you then you're just endangering yourself by continuing at full speed. If you can't understand that then I wouldn't give you too much longer before you do yourself a nasty injury.


  • #78
    paky
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 2,138 ✭✭✭paky


    AnonoBoy wrote: »
    Seriously though it the conditions are so bad that you cannot see what's ahead of you then you're just endangering yourself by continuing at full speed. If you can't understand that then I wouldn't give you too much longer before you do yourself a nasty injury.

    unfortunately the rain is a hazard when cycling but it is one which one must bare.


  • #79
    copeyhagen
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,354 ✭✭✭copeyhagen


    i ride a motorcycle for my work commute into town daily, havedone for a number of years, regardless of weather.

    when its raining, i need to be twice as alert with whats in front of me than when its not raining. you cyclists should be the same


  • #80
    AnonoBoy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,559 ✭✭✭✭AnonoBoy


    paky wrote: »
    unfortunately the rain is a hazard when cycling but it is one which one must bare.

    Yeah, but not stupidly.


  • #81
    44leto
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,137 ✭✭✭44leto


    AnonoBoy wrote: »
    Surely though a check of the road ahead every so often is vital if cycling at speed. I don't think the hairdresser ran out and dropped the sign in front of him so unless it was just around a corner it's something that should be spotted.

    I mean there's all sorts of obstructions that need to be watched out for, nasty potholes, fallen branches etc.

    Tell me about it from parked cars and pot holes as well. If it is not big and obvious it is easy to miss, you glance up when conditions are bad but its not like driving (I am a motorist as well) when you are always looking forward no matter the conditions.

    I am not defending the claims culture, I have hit obstructions in cycle lanes and usually cursed the fkucer and went on my way. But it is something people have to be aware of. Keep the cycle lanes clear especially in bad conditions.

    You for example imagine cycling when it is cold, raining or windy, would you keep your face forward all the time in those conditions. You could say leave your bike at home in those conditions, I do, I have the option of driving. But not at the end of the day when I have to get home from work.

    To be frank, sometimes I think the more cyclists that sue the safer it will be for us. But that wont be me, unless..................


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  • #82
    Gyalist
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,537 ✭✭✭Gyalist


    Canis Lupus wrote: »
    Last company I was in we often settled with someone rather than proceed to court even though we'd hands down win because it was more expensive (both in monetary terms and the 'cost' for our solicitor to be away from her core role) to defend it than just settle.

    It certainly was an eye-opener to me. I had my evidence ready and was prepared to embarass her in court but it never even came to that.

    I can see the financial sense in the system but it undoubtedly encourages frivoulous claims and in the end we all pay for it.


  • #83
    Newaglish
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,734 ✭✭✭Newaglish


    AnonoBoy wrote: »
    That old chestnut does get thrown up time and again. People at parties who bring it up really hate me when I detail the exact nature of the case and why it was a valid claim. I'm a real dickhead.

    What is the exact nature of it? I don't know too much about it bar the usual headlines.


  • #84
    AnonoBoy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 22,559 ✭✭✭✭AnonoBoy


    Newaglish wrote: »
    What is the exact nature of it? I don't know too much about it bar the usual headlines.

    Basically the coffee was so hot that it gave her 3rd degree burns.

    http://www.cracked.com/article_19150_6-famous-frivolous-lawsuit-stories-that-are-total-b.s..html


  • #85
    44leto
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,137 ✭✭✭44leto


    X
    Wrong thread sorry


  • #86
    mathie
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,103 ✭✭✭mathie


    44leto wrote: »
    X
    Wrong thread sorry

    Who do I claim off for the time I wasted reading this post?


  • #87
    Procasinator
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,311 ✭✭✭Procasinator


    paky wrote: »
    unfortunately the rain is a hazard when cycling but it is one which one must bare.

    You have to be safe though. What would have happened if you had hit a slower cyclist or a person crossing the road? Not looking where you are going wouldn't be a good excuse.


  • #88
    44leto
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,137 ✭✭✭44leto


    mathie wrote: »
    Who do I claim off for the time I wasted reading this post?

    LoL i maybe liable but don't bother suing me, it would be a stretch to get price of your lunch out of me.


  • #89
    Dravokivich
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Music Moderators, Politics Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 22,424 CMod ✭✭✭✭Dravokivich


    44leto wrote: »
    You for example imagine cycling when it is cold, raining or windy, would you keep your face forward all the time in those conditions. You could say leave your bike at home in those conditions, I do, I have the option of driving. But not at the end of the day when I have to get home from work.

    To be frank, sometimes I think the more cyclists that sue the safer it will be for us. But that wont be me, unless..................

    I wear a cap, it helps somewhat to shelter your eyes when it's raining. But if ever conditions are too much for me to look forward, I'm getting off my bike. I would become an obstruction to other people around me if I'm not able to pay full attention to what I'm doing and have to swerve suddenly to avoid something I notice at the last moment.


  • #90
    Truley
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,628 ✭✭✭Truley


    There is a guy in my town, complete and utter Irish Nazi. He insists on speaking only Gaeilge when dealing with public service eg in a post office and regularly threatens to sue on grounds of discrimination of 'ethnic minorities' if Irish-speaking provisions are not in place where he deems they should be. He's done this so many times, to the Guards, voluntary sports clubs and the local sports centre to name a few. Anyone that argues with him he threatens to have them for 'slander.' He's a complete chancer and most people don't pay any heed but a lot of people are scared of him because he's nuts.


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  • #91
    paky
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 2,138 ✭✭✭paky


    AnonoBoy wrote: »
    Yeah, but not stupidly.
    stupidity in what sense? what are you insinuating?


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