Raw Deal: What to do if you get splashed by a car or bus and want to make a complaint

WE don’t like to do this, and only rarely take this step – but for legal reasons we can’t give names in this instance.

We can, however, print a warning.

Winter is coming and with it will come rain, slush and puddles on the roads.

Raw Deal was contacted by a lady (we will call her Ms C.) who was on a pavement when she was soaked, head to toe, by a bus that – she claims – was going far too fast and could have avoided the deep puddle it roared through.

Her shoes were ruined and she had to go about her day in wet clothing. She is adamant the bus could, by several safe methods, have avoided splashing her with the deep puddle at the roadside.

She can’t, however, prove this and the bus firm says it can find no CCTV footage of the incident. She contacted Raw Deal, but there was little we could do.

To say the lady was angered is a vast understatement.

It is illegal to intentionally splash pedestrians – although there is no evidence, in this case, that the bus driver had intentionally splashed Ms C.

But, if found guilty of such an offence, a driver can be prosecuted under Section 3 of the Road Traffic Act for careless, aggressive or inconsiderate behaviour on the road. The driver could be summoned to court, fined £150, and have three penalty points added to their licence.

Cyclists can also be prosecuted for splashing.

If you are splashed by a car or bike, get the registration number or a description of a cyclist and note the time and place when it happened.

Many areas, especially in cities, are covered by on-street CCTV cameras.

If possible, get contact details for anyone who may have witnessed the splashing.

Report the incident to police. Don’t worry that it is too trivial a matter or that nothing will be done. A crime has been committed, it is the police’s duty to investigate.