I will stop then as if they are as careless to just drive when it’s not their right of way i then think they aren’t the best of drivers meaning my car may get scratched due to their carelessness.
That’s what I’m thinking: these other drivers whom I consider to be lacking in confidence and experience probably also consider me careless and a bad driver. They see it that I’m taking their right of way whilst I see it that they don’t need more than two car widths to proceed safely – if you take the parked cars on the wide road out of the equation, you’re left with the equivalent of a (narrower) standard road that allows two-way traffic as normal, on which cars never park.
I suppose there are many things in life where it’s not just a case of knowing what you’re doing, but how can the other person know that you know what you’re doing?
Assuming others are focused and sensible is a risk. Up to you whether to take that risk.
Assume that everyone else is either a complete idiot who has never even heard of the highway code or is actively trying to kill you and drive accordingly.
This is good advice in general, but I think also far too simplistic. If I were to take this to its logical conclusion, I most certainly wouldn’t drive on the roads at all – possibly wouldn’t even use the pavements without fear.
Some people are unable to judge how wide a gap is and if their car will fit comfortably / safely through. They just sit there and wait for the oncoming traffic to clear before they proceed. Very frustrating and unnecessary.
Yes, that’s how I see it. I think courtesy and reasonable adjustments (if you have any way of knowing that these are required) are very fair, as the roads are for everybody; but equally, I don’t think a significant lack of confidence and/or ability are acceptable if you want to drive on the public roads. If you aren't able to meet a basic minimum standard, I'm afraid the adjustment needs to be that you shouldn't drive.
Whenever we have the threads about non-drivers, there are always some who will openly state that they would be too anxious or panic a lot if they were to drive, so they make the (wise) decision not to learn in the first place. There also seem to be a lot of MNers who are terrified of motorways and thus refuse to ever use them – which is concerning, but probably the most sensible decision under the circumstances.
The scariest ones, I think, are those who are seriously bad and/or unconfident drivers, but who either fail to realise it or fail to acknowledge it. To them, most people driving normally are bad drivers and they seem blissfully unaware of how much they force other drivers to react sharply to prevent an accident.
It reminds me of the old joke about the woman who hears on the radio about somebody driving the wrong way on the M4 and, knowing that her husband is using that motorway, calls him and urges him to be very careful, as there’s a crazy driver going in the wrong direction. He replies “It’s far worse than that: it’s not just one, there are hundreds of them!”