Just an update re my cycling incident... Physically I am good but will always have some minor issues because of the way my hand healed naturally out of shape and because of nerve damage in the shoulder due to the surgery to pin my collar bone.
The driver admitted criminal negligence and therefore his insurer is paying for more physio and my claim for compensation is ongoing via my solicitor.
The driver appeared in Wrexham Magistrates court on June 12th and was awarded a fine of £369, £85 costs and was given 7 penalty points... I was not even invited to attend and have no clue what he was charged with.
He'd have been fined more for persistent littering...
Not impressed
Good to hear that you're recovering. It takes time and it is frustrating.
I did warn you not to expect too much from the criminal prosecution. In some ways you are lucky the police/CPS prosecuted. Ive seen many where they didn't bother. Tbh, your injury solicitor should have been all over the criminal prosecution side of it - the charge, date of hearing etc and should have kept you informed even if the police/CPS didn't. However, if the feeling is that your claim is worth less than £25k, then your solicitor will only be able to recover fixed costs and won't have much scope for doing more than the absolute necessary.
Sounds like the driver was probably charged with careless driving. Maybe dangerous driving if he pleaded guilty. That would seem to reflect the punishment. I know you wanted him charged with some kind of intentional assault, but the police would never go for that as proving it beyond reasonable doubt is too hard. Maybe if he'd knocked you off then reversed over you while shouting death to cyclists, and even then probably not.
You keep mixing up the criminal and the civil side of things. The driver's insurer sounds like they have admitted civil liability which is obviously good and means you have won your case, so now just to calculate the compensation. Don't be in too much of a rush to settle. You want to know the final prognosis for your injuries before you do. At some point soon, if they haven't already, your solicitor should arrange for you to be seen by an independent orthopaedic surgeon. Make sure it's an upper limb specialist. If you haven't been able to get back on a bike since, there may be a psychological side too. If so, it's all compensatable - injury, cost of treatment, alternative transport cost if you used your bike to commute.
PM me if there is anything else you're not sure about.