Had a Close Call With a Driver? What to Do Next
A car buzzes you, cuts you off or shouts something out the window. Your heart is pounding and you're angry. What you do in the next few minutes matters, both for your safety and for any report you might want to make later.
1. Get safe first
Pull off the road somewhere safe before you do anything else. Don't chase the driver or start an argument at the next light. Confrontations can escalate quickly, and you're the one without a steel cage around you.
2. Check yourself and your bike
Adrenaline hides injuries. If you made contact with the vehicle or fell, check for pain, especially in your head, neck and wrists, and look over your bike before riding on. If you're hurt, call 911.
3. Write it down right away
Details fade fast, so note them while they're fresh:
- The license plate, even a partial one
- The vehicle's make, model and color
- The time, the exact location and the direction you were both traveling
- What happened, in your own words
- Names and phone numbers of any witnesses
4. Save any footage
If you ride with a camera, save the clip before it gets recorded over. Many riders now run a front or rear camera for exactly this reason.
5. Consider reporting it
If there was a crash, injury or damage, report it to the police. For a close pass with no contact, many departments take non-emergency reports, and some cities have online forms. Even if nothing happens right away, reports help show where the problem roads are.
6. If you were hit
Get medical care, report the crash, take photos of your injuries, your bike and the scene, and keep your damaged gear. Talk to a lawyer who handles cycling cases about your options. Local cycling advocacy groups can often recommend one.
7. Turn it into change
Share the location with your local cycling advocacy group or city transportation department. Patterns of close calls are how bike lanes and safer road designs get built.
This is general information, not legal advice.