Me or fellow driver

[ThunderR0ad78]

I was on my way to school on Friday morning, dropping my son off, he's 10, Yr 5. It was Red Nose Day so loads of kids all walking along our high street on my to the school.

Anyway, I turn right off the high street into a smaller, residential road and as I did I spotted my friend with her toddler twins looking rather cute all dressed up in red, en route to nursery! My and my son wanted to grab their attention to wave at my friend and her kiddies to basically show we had seen them in the fab costumes!

Anyway I beeped my horn a couple of times, my mate spotted us and we had a big wave/smiles and that was that.

Anyway, about 5 seconds later a very angry man got out of the van in front, walked over to my car and started swearing and calling me all sorts of names, telling me never to beep him again, who do I think I am, etc etc.

I tried to intervene to explain I was beeping my friend - I pointed her out but he just kept on at me. Anyway, he finally walked away and I calmly said "your apology is accepted" meaning he had misunderstood the situation.

AIBU? Was this my fault for improper use of the horn?

Was this my fault for improper use of the horn?
Yes.

Well it was improper use of the horn and I hate it when people do this, it always makes me jump out of my skin and convinced they at beeping at me even if they are clearly several cars away /going the other way. I think you were in the wrong for beeping but he clearly overreacted. He may have thought there was something seriously wrong though if you kept beeping and were right behind him.

Was this my fault for improper use of the horn?

Right on the horn button.

YWBU to have used your horn.
HWBU to approach your vehicle in an aggressive way.

Forget about it.

You werw in the wrong.

A horn is to alert others to danger, have you any idea how stupid and inappropriate it is to do that as you're driving through school run traffic and pedestrians. The driver of the van probably thought a child was about to go under his wheels and gave you the tongue lashing that you warranted.

You can be fined 1k for inappropriately using your horn and with very good cause to.

Exactly what RhymingRabbit said

You were wrong, he was wronger.

Your horn isn't for beeping to get your friend to wave atyou and it shouldn't be used as such.
Van drivers reaction was over the top tho, it'd have been different if he'd got out and seen you were a 6"10 male rigger.

Ignore it. Move on.

As others have said: improper use of horn. YABU (but he was a bit of a knob too).

He over reacted but what were you playing at really? You realise that there are other people on the road don't you, not just you and your pedestrian friend? You distracted everyone else and anyone who heard your horn had to look around to figure out what the issue was, and it was just you absent mindedly waving at your mate. That isn't what your horn is for.

Thank you all, yes I can see the error in what I did.

In response to funkykingston - he definitely didn't think a child was going under his wheels. He was directly in front of me and we were both stationary at the time for about 5 mins because there was a very big delivery lorry blocking the road whilst making a delivery. I was completely stationary when beeping my friend and waving, I wouldn't / couldn't do this while my car was actually moving.

In reality, he had wrongly but understandably assumed I was beeping him because I couldn't see the blockage in the road. That was half of his rant - telling me to open my eyes and look ahead, can't you see the fing lorry etc.

Also, I'm not sure my actions warranted a "tongue lashing" that included words such as the c or b word and in front of my son but there we go. I accept I shouldn't have beeped my horn and he had a right to be cross with this.

Thanks for the reply.

You missed off the reason why he thought you were beeping him. An overreaction on his part but I would have thought what he did in that situation and been fuming that you were so impatient/unobservant (although I wouldn’t have confronted you about it).

You were entirely at fault and acting illegally, although he wasn’t particularly nice about it

Yup, what RhymingRabbit said.

I have neoghbours whose vosotprs do a double beep today good bye. It drives me up the bloody wall. It is incredibly rude.

Please spare a through for the dozens of people ho have to listen to you rooting away in your car horn. My parent live hosed a primary school and can never have a lie in beciase parents toot toot from about 8am!,

Minor to you - but you get to drive away. The man over reacted, but I have sympathy for selfish horn blasters!!!

Sorry for the typos!! Horn blasters make me so cross😊