Motorcycle Group Ride-Outs: Law And Safety

Group ride-outs are organised social rides where multiple bikers get together to journey along a planned route, with lead riders, markers, and social stops. They’re a great way to get out and about and meet up with like-minded bikers, and I could write thousands of words on their benefits. That isn’t the point of this article though. I will be talking about the law as it applies to ride-outs with a few thoughts after about making them safer.

The Duties Of The Riders

There is a lot of comment out there on social media about the duties and responsibilities of riders while riding in a group. Who has to do what, when and how.  The law is pretty simple though: it isn’t any different for group ride-outs than it is if you hit the road on your own. Every one of us has a duty of care to each other, and to other road users when riding, regardless of the vehicle you’re on or your position in a group.

If the lead rider goes through a red light and the rest follow, they are each liable for riding through the red light, and the leader is not responsible for what the other riders did. Everyone is responsible for keeping themselves and others safe and legal.

That means that everyone riding in a group owes the others the following duties: to ride at a speed with sufficient distance to be able to stop for foreseeable hazards, to ride with reasonable care and skill, and if being overtaken to maintain a safe and steady course. None of these are different to road users riding individually. Every rider has to comply with road traffic law and should follow the Highway Code, whether in a group or not.

As always with the law, there are exceptions to be aware of: even if you yourself are not riding dangerously, if there’s evidence that you’re encouraging or assisting a member of your group to do so, you could also be prosecuted. That means not only is it in your best interests to ride safely yourself, but to ensure your other group members are doing the same.

When Does A Ride-Out Become An Event?

If I go out with a couple of mates for a ride, that’s all it is: a few mates on a ride. But what about when there’s more people involved? Dave Day for example had tens of thousands of participants taking to the roads to celebrate the life and commemorate the death of Dave Myers – one half of The Hairy Bikers. That was certainly an event, not just a mates’ ride-out.

So how do you know if it’s a casual ride along or a legally regulated event? Basically, the larger and more publicly organised the ride-out becomes, the more likely it is that the organiser will need to speak to the police, local council or highway authority. This is particularly important if the ride is publicly advertised, raises money, commemorates an event or is likely to disrupt traffic. Organisers in those situations may need to do a risk assessment and obtain council permission and public liability insurance. There’s no hard and fast rule as to when a ride-out becomes an event, but it gets harder to deny it’s a legally regulated event as the numbers go up.  

Every Council has its own rules. Many consider 50+ as an “event”. Check your local rules.

Some local councils have utilized Public Spaces Protection Orders to penalise large-scale ride-outs that they perceive as antisocial. Ensure you check for local restrictions on GOV.UK regarding numbers and your event’s route to avoid breaching local council guidelines. What we as riders consider social, a council may consider antisocial. If you’ve got a good number of riders together, it’s better to be safe than sorry and get in touch with your local council ahead of them.

Some Tips For A Safe And Enjoyable Ride-Out

To close, some things to think about when planning or participating in your next group ride-out.

·         Make sure everyone knows where you are going. That way if some riders drop off at the back, they can reach the destination anyway. It eases the pressure to keep up which could lead to dangerous riding.

·         Ride in a staggered formation on slower roads. This gives each rider more space and means they can see more around them. On faster roads a single file works better but keep a decent gap between you just in case.

·         If you’re going out for a ride, agree not to overtake within the group – the most common cause of accidents in group ride outs is people overtaking. Wait for the next stop and then change.

·         Remember that smaller groups are easier to manage. Bigger groups may want to use a Lead Rider and a Tail-End Charlie – someone who sits at the very back of the group and makes sure nobody falls behind, gets lost or breaks down.

·         Know who you are out with. I want to trust the people I ride with. They may go a bit quicker than me, but they will stop and wait and allow everybody to keep to their own pace.

·         Ride at your own pace. Don’t force yourself to keep up.

·         Whenever somebody needs to fuel up – everybody else should do the same.

·         Enjoy it. That’s the point after all!