To be shocked at this level of aggression?

[Glitterzzz]

Hi guys. I dropped my son to nursery this morning as usual and pulled out of a junction onto the road. It was raining and hard visibility but I did check each way.

I pull out to hear a few seconds later a beep sound from the driver behind. I immediately realise my mistake and think fair enough I deserve that maybe I didn’t check enough? He was not anywhere near crashing into me given the few seconds and then the beep and then I looked in my rear view mirror.

We proceed to drive along the road where I pull in on the left as was going to the post office. He gives me the finger and revs his van behind me. I come to a stop and he drives up the side car to car and opens his passenger window. I also open my window half way.

He screams at me I nearly caused an accident. I said look I made a mistake but why are you being so aggressive ? He immediately starts screaming names at me your a fucking prick , your a stupid bitch, and so on. I lost my cool and said well your a fucking dickhead then. At this point he goes to put his van in park and grapples at his seatbelt as if he was going to come out of his veichle.

I mentally noted that my doors were locked, and I don’t know if he saw I had a camera in my car but he didn’t exit the veichle. He then continues to scream abuse and ends it with telling me ‘ your a FUCKING WHORE ‘ that’s what you are a fucking whore then drives off... I checked the van for a company name but none. Didn’t get his plate number but was really shaken over this.

On reflection I shouldn’t have even put my window down. But I said straight away I made a mistake .. where do we draw the line of thinking it’s okay to be this aggressive and verbally insulting someone ? Plenty of times I’ve not been happy with another driver but don’t even beep unless it’s serious ..

I have a dash cam could probs get his reg off that. But is this even a crime ? I hate to think how he speaks to females in his own life. It was when I shot back a verbal insult ( after many from him) that I could see his shock and that’s and he was gesturing that he was going to get out the car... still a bit shaken now !

It’s always men isn’t it? Funny that 🙄

No need for the aggression. When I have done similar in the past I have put up my 4 way blinkers as a sort of acknowledgement of my stupidity (I’m not sure if it’s the thing to do though)

I do not think that people are blaming the OP, but winding down the window and calling him a F*cking Dickghwad, clearly will inflame a situation, and one could argue, makes you the same as the driver behind?

Lesson from this would be not to engage, keep the windows up and doors locked.

I feel the poster who blamed you for engaging is victim blaming.

Oh ffs. It’s not victim blaming. It’s just common sense. Better to ignore than get a fist in your face surely?

Infact I've had several run ins with male van and truck drivers now that I think about it.

A nasty experience, OP. God knows why some people have such a short fuse. Best to stay calm and let them make fools of themselves

What are the odds that he was driving too fast in poor condtions, and probably didn't have his lights on?

Was thinking this. Did he have lights on op?

Next time definitely take his number plate. Practice it when driving normally, looking at a number plate and memorising it as fast as you can.

I had someone who walked up to my window once and swore at me. He had a very distinctive vehicle, so he got stopped by the police later that day. I got a call back from them to let me know they'd found him and had a word with him.

If you drive often enough you will end up finding one of these arseholes.
Once I was joining the motorway on an uphill entryway behind a campervan, so I checked, joined and then moved to overtake the campervan. I checked and there was plenty of space, but the idiot behind me on that lane, who was going well above the speed limit took offence at having to slow down for the few seconds it took me to return to my lane, so he then proceed to go in front of me and break-check me repeatedly, which must have slowed him way more than having to "wait" for me overtaking the campervan.... When we got to a roundabout he stopped and it looked as if he was expecting me to stop too and get out of my car, as if!!
I am pretty sure he was high on something to have worked up that level of rage...

Well the main part of driving is being aware of other road users because we are all human and sometimes make mistakes.

His aggression was unnecessary, just be glad you’re not his wife!

What the fuck is wrong with people that they get that angry over such a relatively minor thing

Fuck him . Hope he has an early heart attack , I really hate that

Mrs swift
It’s always men isn’t it? Funny that 🙄

No, stop being sexist.
Tell your sexist fairy tale to Jeremy Vine who was attacked by Ms Pearson in a fit of road rage.
www.thesun.co.uk/news/2772155/woman-road-rage-jeremy-vine-apology/

Don't engage again just drive away

Hopefull looking more carefully where you're going, especially in the current weather conditions.

It's clear that this posteris dumping all the blame on the aggrieved driver yet judging from some of the language used on here most are not strangers to poor language. Often people of all physical persuasions will engage in language they wouldn't normally use when they have been the innocent party in a near road accident.

Often people of all physical persuasions will engage in language they wouldn't normally use when they have been the innocent party in a near road accident.

What, like "fucking whore"? Don't think so, mate. Maybe along the lines of "for fucks sake, you scared the shit out of me".
Don't make excuses for people like that.

I think it's a peculiar sort of anger :Road rage. Very dangerous stuff. Some people become monsters once they are behind the heels. Thanks the Lord you are in the UK, not in the US were people walk around with pistols.

Don't make excuses for people like that

Don't make excuses for actions that could kill, I'm sure than many of the women on here use similar language in these circumstances, but that's OK, of course!

Unfortunately we have to coexist with bonkers people like this. Take consolation in how miserable their lives must be to explode at a complete stranger over something so trivial. Silly sausages.

I dont blame you at all, if someone's doing that you have the right to respond, I would have done the same. Horrible intimidating pig. Hope you're ok

Similar thing happened to me last week, 2 drunk men bumped into my pregnant friend, I told them to watch where they're going and one got right in my face and shouted f* off as if he was going to hit me.

It's unfair women get treated this way. Would they be that aggressive of a large stocky man? No. But they do it because they like having the power and because we physically cant match up. It's a messed up world

Its not always men but more often than not its is - in my humble experience of life!

I once called a cyclist abusing me for not moving over on a one way single lane street when he was trying weave his way to the front) a lycra clad twat. Not my finest moment but l was low down in my car and he was looming over me at my window shouting down at me in a very intimidating way called me a silly bitch. l just saw red and shouted back 'and you're a (lycra clad twat)'

Road rage, people say some crazy things when they are driving. Just let it slide off and next time don’t engage or if you do, politeness always makes them really angry

Was your dashcam still recording when you wound your window down? If it was, I would take the footage to the police. Totally unacceptable aggression

tbh - once you encounter someone like that you're in a lose/lose situation. If you answer back - you're blamed for that. If you don't - well you should have stood up to him.

So it doesn't really matter what you do, so don't feel guilty about it. Nothing you did/said would have made him a nicer person.

It's not acceptable at all. A few weeks ago a man drove behind me beeping constantly because I had turned left into a side road when he was waiting to turn right into it, it wasn't even his right of way! I stopped my car and gestured at him to come over and speak to me and he just drove off, I just think how embarrassing for him and how does he cope when something bad actually happens to him.

dh reaction to bad driving is to click his tongue shakes his head slightly& ignore - he says that stressing about others driving means you loose concentration & stresses you out - (he is a calm chap)

It’s not always men. But it usually is. Let’s be honest. Fed up with tiptoeing and being politically correct on this sorry not sorry.