To trust one's instincts when cycling in Paris, one rang some bells (9)
I believe the answer is:
hunchback
'in paris one rang some bells' is the definition.
(as in The Hunchback of Notre-Dame)
I don't understand how the rest of the clue works.
(Other definitions for hunchback that I've seen before include "Hugo's eponymous hero" , "Quasimodo, for instance" , "Quasimodo was one" , "Quasimodo was the ... of Notre Dame" , "Quasimodo, for example" .)