If you need this on the back of your car you shouldn’t be driving?

[escapingtothecountry]

Just that really.I saw it on a car last week (dash cam picture, before someone asks) Am I required to be patient when your reactions are so slow that you can’t break fast enough and hit my car, or worse my child?

The worst drivers are school run mums and aggressive younger men and women in fancy cars.
I would rather tootle round at 20 behind an elderly driver (safe and legal) than have someone aggressively tail gating when I am driving at the speed limit.
Similarly I would rather wait a few moments for someone taking a while to do a legal parking manoevre than risk my life cycling near a primary school at 3.30 when idiots in 4 by 4s are parking all over the pavement and barging through tiny gaps.
I'd rather be safe than get somewhere 30 seconds faster.
Signs should not be necessary but they are a reaction to the depressing number of aggressive and entitled drivers

I hate any of these kinds of signs. If you don't feel confident to drive or your children are distracting you too much then surely you shouldn't be operating a car anyway. Dangerous and selfish. If it was me then l would ban them and driving at 47mph on the motorway when there are no hazards

One thing worse than signs blocking car windows is the idiots who read them instead of paying attention to their driving.

Agree with EL888. Also, isn't this why they have free bus passes? Because of slower reactions & higher potential to cause accidents?

YANBU. I like my stopping distances, I like to make reasonable progress along the road according to road conditions including other road users. I pay attention to the driving style of the person ahead.

L plates and P plates are useful to indicate that there is a novice driver who has lower experience and less confidence. However they are learning and supported or have recently demonstrated a legal level of competence in their driving ability, and will improve with experience.

Someone who feels the need to obliterate their rear view to instruct people to be patient has already demonstrated a significant lack of awareness in road safety. The problem with elderly drivers who are no longer confident and competent is that they only deteriorate. Experience is not going to improve their vision, reactions and judgement.

I already dislike "grandchildren on board" as a pointless obstruction and generally any baby on board type sign is pretty useless. Either the driver behind you is sensible and patient anyway, or if they're a tailgating wassock, they are highly unlikely to change their behaviour due to a sticker.

Although I could be tempted by "distracting, bickering siblings on board"

The "Baby on Board" signs were originally designed so in the event of a car crash the emergency services knew to check for a little baby, as its likely they could get overlooked in the rubble. Obviously all the new daft signs off the back of this are stupid, but the original meaning makes the classic Baby on board sign a good idea.

Not sure what to think of "elderly driver" though. Seems odd to me.

The "Baby on Board" signs were originally designed so in the event of a car crash the emergency services knew to check for a little baby, as its likely they could get overlooked in the rubble.

I think this has to be an urban myth, surely? How does it make sense a baby would be overlooked (presumably, even though there is also a baby seat etc) but a small, 15cm sign would not be? The sign would have to be a much harder object to 'spot' than a baby.

The baby on board signs are a load of crap,emergency services if needed will check all your car for passangers and not just skip the back cause there isn't a sign

Complete BS about Baby on Board signs being created for emergency services

www.snopes.com/fact-check/baby-on-board/

I have no beef with P plates - I'd rather know that the driver is inexperienced.

I now live in Australia where they are compulsory for new drivers - I think they're a good thing, and always have done!

The rest though - they can all get in the sea. Fucking ludicrous.

One thing worse than signs blocking car windows is the idiots who read them instead of paying attention to their driving

Eh? Being able to read 2-7 words on a sign at the same as driving is pretty simple. In fact, you'd have difficulty finding your way around if you weren't capable of it, surely?

Any driver can drive like an idiot, and all other drivers should be driving with an awareness of that possibility. Any driver could brake suddenly because a dog or child runs into the road. You're meant to drive with an awareness the unexpected can happen at any point.

My driving is likely to be more cautious and slower when I am in an unfamiliar area where I don't know the roads and I'm not sure where the next turning will be. I'm not putting up a "not driven here before" sign up, though.

If you're the sort of driver who does drive aggressively, tailgating and so on, I'd have thought they be more likely to see an "elderly driver" sign as a challenge, someone to intimidate, rather than suddenly becoming a considerate driver, so it would be counter productive to put it up.

"isn't this why they have free bus passes? Because of slower reactions & higher potential to cause accidents?"

Eh? Surely concessionary bus passes were introduced because a lot of elderly people are scraping by on just their pensions?

From a quick google search:

Some emergency workers have found the caution signs to be useful for other reasons. In case of an accident, for example, this noticeable sign can alert emergency personnel that there is a child in the vehicle who might not be able to get themselves out, says Julie Townsend, the deputy chief executive of the UK road safety charity Brake.

So no, it isn't complete BS. But clearly posters on MN seem to hate these signs.

Those Baby on Board signs are nothing to do with emergency services. Oh we didn’t check for a child in the back because there was no sign in the window. Bollocks. They were made to make money from a bunch of ridiculously smug and entitled parents who a) want to show how special they are for reproducing ie doing something billions have done before them and continue to do after them and b) want to make everyone else responsible for the safety of their child on the road while driving like twats themselves.

I see Baby on Board and think ‘And?’ Seriously, what difference do you think your stupid sign makes? Considerate drivers drive considerately regardless and dick drivers aren’t going to be deterred from driving like dicks by a sign in your window.

My friend was a witness to an awful accident years ago. She tried to help the family talking to them until the emergency services arrived. She could see a dead child in the back, other child badly hurt. Dad dead, mum out of it. The car was towed away afterwards. The poor tow company then found a baby in the footwell at the back of the car. One of the children must have been holding it.

Considerate drivers drive considerately regardless and dick drivers aren’t going to be deterred from driving like dicks by a sign in your window

I don't know, I think some people who drive poorly could actually get a reminder from seeing a sign like that. Maybe back off from tailgating a little, or something like that. Lots of people who drive dangerously may be slightly less comfortable about endangering kids than endangering adults.

If you need concessions from other drivers then you shouldn't be driving.

So that rules out all learner drivers and probably all recently qualified drivers on P plates. Talk about pulling up the drawbridge...

I think if this is just about alerting people that this driver might take a few seconds to drive away when the lights turn green, than driving away the millisecond they do; or that they might take a bit longer to get out of a parked car at the petrol station, then that is fair enough. This is not about reaction times but that old limbs move slightly slower.
A bit more patience would do everyone some good.

I honestly believe the signs are designed to remind bad drivers to maybe not drive so badly, rather than to ask for concessions from good drivers.

The former greatly outnumber the latter, so it makes sense.

No worse than 'Baby on Board'. It shouldn't matter to any driver who is or isn't in the car in front.

I assumed they are similar to the 'I am more important than you and need a seat because I am pregnant and you are only disabled with crutches' attitude.

An elderly driver is likely to have a sign like that due to all the arseholes on the roads these days that like to tailgate and beep at any driver, not just the older ones for not going over the limit. So many people with no manners or respect for anyone are driving now. Not long ago we had a cunt behind us, beeping because we had slowed to go over traffic calming sodding bumps rather than race along damaging the car and hurting ourselves in the process. He soon stopped when he hit them himself, hope it hurt.

speckofstardust Someone will have got a major bollocking for that.

And I just found the story, the baby was being carried in an adults arms rather than in a car seat.

www.croydonadvertiser.co.uk/news/croydon-news/three-week-old-baby-died-910177

And I would display that sign if it stopped drivers driving 70mph from my car leaving only a tiny gap.

I agree with the OP. If a driver feels that they need that sign on their car, to me that says they don't feel confident when driving, and if that's the case, then yes they shouldn't be driving.

My neighbour has one in her car that says "Ickle pwincess on board"
Bad enough, but the child in question is anything but! "Spoilt brat on board" would be a lot closer to the truth.

I would have reported him with that photo to 101 on the basis of 1) he does not use his rear mirror at all as the view is completely blocked by the sign which would also fail the MOT and 2) if he feels he needs more patience is he reacting slowly - should he be on the road? Is he a danger to other users.