I was driving to work at 65 km/hour (the speed limit on this road is 60 km/h) so I wasn't going too slow or speeding. The guy in the car behind me is tailing me really really close, to the point where I coudn't even see the front of the guys car in my rearview mirror. The road I drive down is 1 lane only, so he or I couldn't switch lanes.
So I hit my brakes (not hard enough to make my car jump or anything, but enough for him to hit his brakes hard and possibly jump a bit). Then he switched into the on-coming lane, drove next to me, gave me the finger, and then cutt me off and zoomed ahead of me.
Was I wrong to hit my breaks?
2007-08-17 05:07:07 · 20 answers · asked by Melissa 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Etiquette
Going 5 over the limit isn't really speeding. They don't actually set photo radar or give tickets unless you are 10 or over the limit. Remember I am canadian not american! I go by KM not miles :D
2007-08-17 05:29:30 · update #1
no, its pretty common to do that.
he got that close to see if he could get you to go faster. when you braked, you pissed him off, so it became worth it (in his mind) to break the law, and pass you so he could speed away.
you did what anyone else would do in your shoes.
if you dont want to "brake check" him next time, there is another option that i use all the time.... just slow down gradually until you are 5 under. if he backs off, then speed back up. if he stays on your bumper, then keep going slow. it works almost all the time for me.
2007-08-17 05:17:58 · answer #1 · answered by swatthefly 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
My daughter was in a car accident last summer. Because she was under 18, she was ordered to attend a defensive driving course. Believe it or not, the instructor actually told the kids if someone is tailgaiting do a "brake check." What a hoot! I can't tell you how many times I have been tempted to do this and let the person hit me. A rear end collision is always the rear person's fault so, assuming there are no injuries, they are the only one suffering for it. But alas, I am not willing to take the risk so I let them continue on their way, while I mutter obscenities they'll never hear.
Oh and one other thing... It was no different than if you HAD to hit the brakes (something in the road, etc.). That dope should not have been on your tail, plain and simple.
2007-08-17 05:47:31 · answer #2 · answered by ds37x 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, you were not wrong. If I remember correctly, the DMV handbook says that if someone is tailgating you, you can tap your brakes to let them know to back off (I tested over 6 years ago, so forgive me if I am wrong). As long as you don't slam on them and cause him to rear end you, then its not wrong. I practice this all the time, I live in CA and everyone is in a rush out here.
Look at it this way, if this same situation was happening and the person in front of you hit their brakes, you would have no choice but to hit yours, and the idiot behind you would have to hit his even harder. He still woulda given you the finger.
If he was in that much of a hurry, he should have passed you once he realized that you were not going fast enough for him.
2007-08-17 05:20:43 · answer #3 · answered by babygirl07usa 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I understand why you did what you did, but in this case he was in the wrong and it was actually the safer thing to do to not hit your brakes. I've been in that situation before, but I've kept myself from responding your way just because I know that if they glanced down for just that moment or something then there could have been an accident and if someone is driving like that to start with I'd hate to have to deal with them in an accident....not to mention the possibility of injury. In the end it's just not worth it. Just go on and let them be jerks and keep yourself safe.
2007-08-17 05:15:17 · answer #4 · answered by Some Guy 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, I don't know about wrong, but he could have rear-ended you, which could have resulted in an accident. He was definitely wrong in tailgating, especially at such a fast speed, but there are a lot of ***holes like that on the road. Probably the best thing to do in that situation is to just slow down until the jerk passes.
2007-08-17 05:15:22 · answer #5 · answered by Starscape 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
He's driving behind you. It's up to him to keep a REASONABLE distance behind YOU so as to not cause an accident. If he hit you it'd be his fault. Lightly tapping the break should've been enough to tell the driver to fall back.
Apparently even going 5 MPH over the speed limit wasn't enough for this jerko.
2007-08-17 05:28:56 · answer #6 · answered by polishedboneofthemoon 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Usually when I'm faced with that I will tap my brakes enough to flash the brake lights twice. THis is a signal to most normal people which says as a reminder to 'back off'. There are those who don't follow this rule.
So long as you were NOT trying to cause an accident, and so long as your car was completely under your power, you did nothing 'wrong'.
2007-08-17 05:16:21 · answer #7 · answered by Marvinator 7 · 3⤊ 1⤋
I honestly don't think you were completely wrong. It's possible the both of you could've caused an accident, but he shouldn't have been following so close behind you. I hate when people do that. I usually drive slow when people do that to me so they can get the picture that they need to move their asses to the other lane!!!!
2007-08-17 05:17:17 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You did OK, I do the same by just tapping my breaks. Makes whoever is behind you unsure if your going to stop or not. The only other thing you can so and only if there is room is to pull over and let them by. Ignore the finger thing, that could let to road rage.
2007-08-17 17:29:40 · answer #9 · answered by Classy Granny 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
absolutely not thats the right thing to do... but if you were going 65 miles an hour in a 60 mph zone, you were speeding.
2007-08-17 05:21:56 · answer #10 · answered by aretwo_d2 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋