Tailgating. Pull over or keep driving?

[Staffielove23]

I was driving on a country road this morning. It’s national speed limit so 60mph, and I drove at this speed for the straight bits slowing right down for the corners as it’s so bendy and I don’t want to end up over my line with a tractor oncoming or something like that. I had someone behind me, I think they must drive that road everyday, as they were getting right up my ass even on the bends. I mean I couldn’t even see their bumper and I had my kid in the back. So I indicated and pulled over to let them past as they were making me feel nervous. They lean on their horn and make some kind of hand gesture as they pass me. Was I being unreasonable to pull over?

I agree. They are completely out of order, but it just isn’t worth the hassle.

I wish everyone had a camera in the front and back of their car. That way, tailgaters could be filmed and fined. I wish there were more acoustic cameras as well, to catch the assholes who drive around in cars with modified engines and exhausts. All I hear, night and day, is the screeching and explosions of boy racer cars. This has been going on for decades, and nothing ever changes. Why don’t the police fine the little twats? Same goes for tailgaters. News would quickly spread on the moron grapevine.

'...then they overtake out of frustration and anger, don't concentrate, hit an on coming car, which then crashes into your car...'

None of which would be OP's responsibility. I'm all for safe driving but this is nonsense. I am not responsible for someone else's poor choices. And neither is OP

You did a sensible thing.

I did a speed awareness course recently, and there was a whole section on tailgating and what to do. The advice is to control what you can - the space in front of you.

1. Slow down to make the space in front of you bigger, so that you have more stopping time in front of you. This means you're less likely to hit the tilting in front of you and have the tailgater smash you from behind, and it means you're less likely to hit the thing in front of you while you're distracted and rear view mirror hovering because of the tailgater.

2. maintain a safe speed, whatever you deem that to be in the circumstances (road, your calmness etc)

3. if the tailgater overtakes you into the space you just created for safety, then slow down again and make the space large again. Thank your lucky stars he's in front of you now!

4. if the tailgater is still with you, and you do not feel safe to continue driving, pull over when safe to do so.

Must be right if it's on the speed awareness course, right?!

You did the right thing. Gradually reducing speed and letting them overtake is the safest thing to do, so they can take their arsehole driving elsewhere.

You did absolutely the right thing OP!
I usually treat tailgaters to some free screenwash

In my youth I’d have wound them up by going slower and flicking the fogs to mimic sudden braking.
Now, I just can’t be arsed with it and let them by. Life’s too short to be involved in their inevitable accident.

I did a speed awareness course recently, and there was a whole section on tailgating and what to do. The advice is to control what you can - the space in front of you.

Hey I just did that course today! Did they get you for 26 in a 20 zone too? I learned my lesson.

If you drive in a manner to deliberately antagonise or to deliberately prevent them from overtaking then your driving is as bad as theirs and your poor choices would make you responsible.

But I’m fantasising that I’m the evil truck driver from Duel 😂

Just tap the brakes intermittently....freaks the fucker right out.

Play stupid games. Win stupid prizes.

I did have a karma moment with a tailgater some years ago.

30 zone. I was actually doing about 31 when corsa boy appeared. You know the type, Smurf hanging from the towing eye, cap on etc. Anyway, I maintained my speed because I knew that more often than not a Thursday morning there would be a mobile camera around the next bend.

corsa boy was so far up my arse as we rounded the bend he didn’t see the white van, nor did he see it as he floored it up the road overtaking me on chevrons. He did see it eventually, but by this point he was pretty much level with it so I doubt the slamming on of his brakes did much to save him.
I still smile at that.

I did this recently to someone who tailgating and gesturing at me aggressively for reasons known only to him. It was stupid on my part as it escalated his aggressive driving and he overtook in a really dangerous way and ended up nearly swerving into oncoming traffic. He then pulled over and started to reverse on the wrong side of the road as if to get behind me again but I was able to pull into some office car park and fortunately he didn’t follow.

most tailgaters are probably just a bit knobbish but others could be complete bloody lunatics not worth putting yourself at risk.

I hate peoples that tailgate and agree 100% that those people need to seriously wise up.

However, there is nothing more frustrating than being (at a safe distance) behind someone that goes around bends very slow then speeds up on the straight parts so that you can't overtake. In that case, I wish those drivers would just keep a steady pace to allow overtaking rather than drastic speed increases and decreases.

So you sped up on the straight bits so they couldn’t overtake?
Then it sounds like you put your brakes on round the corners?
When you see brake lights it’s very hard to tell how much or what the car is slowing for. You could have been slowing quickly for a pheasant or stopping for a deer. You can just drive slower round corners without breaking so the car behind does too without making them think somethings going to happen.
Just let them overtake. Why wouldn’t you?

@Arrrrrrragghhh hey? Adjusting your speed according to how much of the road you can see isn’t antagonistic, is a basic principle of driving.

Coming off a bend and onto a straight, I would gain speed and then hold steady, so someone can overtake if they want to. If they started to overtake I’d reduce my speed by maybe 5mph to make life safer and easier for them.

And of course I use my breaks on corners. It’s a visual signal to dickheads behind that I’m slowing my car down. Some people need that level of spoonfeeding.

Slowing down round bends and going faster on straight sections is perfectly normal driving.
But yes, if you've got a tailgating knob best to slow on a straight if it's long enough and clear for them to overtake.

Yes. My word against theirs, even though I told them the passenger was a boy of around 11. The cyclists were aware of it but of course I couldn't track them down.

I always pull over and get out of their way.

If they want to drive like an idiot they can do it as far away from me as possible!

You did the right thing.

Yes it’s tempting to slow right down to piss them off, but it could easily cause an accident. Wouldn’t strictly be your fault but that tends to be little consolation!

I really hate tailgaters too. Very dangerous thing to do. Get up earlier if you need to be somewhere in such a hurry.

“The passenger might back them up” is a ridiculous reason not to do anything.

Equally, other drivers or the cyclists might back you up if they appealed for witnesses. OK they might not actually do that but their reason for not acting makes no sense at all.

There are so many bad and aggressive drivers these days and you have no idea what they might do. Taking steps to protect yourself is the right course of action. Do not antagonise them by driving more slowly. Try to avoid pulling over, as they might also stop and come back and threaten you. Always keep your car doors locked. I know someone who was followed into a car park and was beaten up.

You did the right thing to pull over but it was shitty of the briber to use the horn

as for them saying dive slower to piss them off that makes them a bigger arsehole than the person tailgating

On my speed awareness course years ago did recommend that you pull over if safe to do so. Best to drive defensively not aggressively.

However if someone if up my arse in the 20mph limit in my village it's only 100 yards until I make a right turn anyway so I'm happy to slow them down for a few seconds. . I've had rude gestures for sticking to the speed limit. You can't win with aggressive, angry drivers and generally it's best to get out of their way.

Same on the motorway when you are overtaking a lorry. I'm going to wait until I've made the manoeuvre and can pull back into the other lane safely, regardless of the Audi twat flashing his lights who wants to drive at 90mph behind me and apparently wants me to exceed the speed limit where there are speed cameras, crash into the lorry or levitate my vehicle. He can wait 30 seconds to get the six points on his licence.

I’d slow down on straight bits and tuck in but not stop to allow people past. I live on a country road and do it what I think is safe normally 40-50 but some people go down it at 60 and I’d rather they were in front of me than behind. There are points in the road where it narrows to one lane going round a corner so you really have to slow right down some people just seem to cross fingers and hope for the best.