A volunteer-run cycling club did not owe any liability to a car driver who seriously injured a rider on one of its events, the High Court has ruled. In Hetherington v Fell & Anor Mr Justice Ritchie concluded that the club had met its duty of care to warn drivers that cyclists were doing a time trial, and the negligent driver was solely at fault.

The case is believed to be the first time that the Social Action, Responsibility and Heroism Act 2015 has been relied upon in a judgment in the High Court. The legislation requires the court to have regard to whether any party to a claim was acting for the benefit of society or its members.

The judge said ‘without any reservation’ that the cycling club volunteers and the club itself had met their required duty of care. He added: ‘This was a voluntary organisation carrying out tasks for free for the benefit of members of society and the standard of care placed upon them in law is not so high that it would discourage such beneficial voluntary activities.’

The injured rider was taking part in a time trial in 2019 arranged by Ferryhill Wheelers Cycling Club. Part of the route was on a dual carriageway, the A689 Hartlepool Road, and a driver returning home from a 12-hour work shift collided with the cyclist at about 20mph. 

The cyclist spent three months in hospital then required rehabilitation for four and a half months, and has been left with a lack of capacity, personality change and a 6% risk of epilepsy.

The driver admitted liability but brought Part 20 proceedings against the club alleging negligent risk assessment and failure to put out adequate signs and a sufficient number of marshals.

The club denied liability for the accident and asserted it was a team of volunteers carrying out desirable activities: it told the court that imposing a duty of care would discourage the organisers and those who took part. The club said it had arranged many previous cycling time trials and had mitigated the risk at the accident site junction by putting up temporary signs and placing marshals. These measures had not been noticed by the driver. 

Dismissing the Part 20 claim, the judge said a volunteer-run club should not be held to the compliance standards of a multinational. 'We are not talking about the Shell Corporation here,' he said.