Driving with one hand on the wheel?

[PassingStranger]

Somebody that I'm regularly a front seat passenger of drives with one hand on the wheel sometimes.

AIBU to keep mentioning it. They assume me all is fine and we haven't had an accident yet?

It makes me a little uncomfortable though.
They aren't doing anything else with the other hand, they just feel they don't always need both hands.
AiBU.

Are you a driver?

Rule 160 says driver must have both hands on the wheel where possible and not to have both hands off the wheel for a long period of time.
Also if they went down a pothole they would not have so much control.
Personally I would not get in their car.

If a front tyre blows out suddenly it can cause the steering wheel to be wrenched from your hand.

I've seen the blokes off Top Gear/Grand Tour drifting and completing J-turns one handed 🤣

I drive a lot for work, I tend to switch between a low down two handed and a higher up two handed. Occasionally I go for the one handed, really whatever mood takes me.

DH is an advanced driver and he was taught that two hands tends to make the movements of a car more dramatic when moving the wheel compared to one handed, but control on sudden braking is always better two handed. So, swings and roundabouts I guess

Literally everyone drives with one hand on the wheel sometimes, how would you change gear otherwise?

I mean, I do. I've never thought anything of it!

i always drive one handed, unless its in the snow (maybe) using 2 hands makes me tense up

One hand on the wheel and one hand free to flip the bird at other motorists or pedestrians etc!

I'm sure that's in the Highway Code!

Thanks for that, I'd have never known that if you hadn't pointed it out. Feel so enlightened now.

DD says she gets nervous when I put two hands on the steering wheel as it means something is about to happen.

If I'm in an area I don't know or the road is dodgy, etc etc I have two hands. Sometimes I have two hands but they're on the bottom of the steering wheel. I do reverse park and manoeuvre by just wanging it round which 100% isn't that safe but I've never had an issue as if it goes awry I just grab it. Same as when I've gone through a puddle etc with one hand.

I drive almost 4k a month and have driver assessments regularly and am tip top for safety. Zero accidents or near misses.

Breaking your wrist and potentially both vs actually crashing the car with multiple air bags and safety features that make bumps and bruises the likely outcome.

To be honest if a blow out is that dramatic your not keeping control either way.

Lose hands on the wheel so if it's pulled from you it does you no harm

With respect, this is recurring theme constantly talked about on ADI groups, rather tediously I know all the arguments around it.

On an exciting day we get to talk about roundabouts.

Here is an extract from the incredibly exciting ‘The Official DVSA Guide to Driving the essential skills’. Fill your boots.

Love it...you cheered me right up.

@PassingStranger people who insist on driving with one hand on the wheel only (apart from the obvious need to change gear) generally regard themselves as exceptionally good drivers. They really won't ever be able to understand why you might find it concerning.

there is a lot of people having quite dramatic blowouts.

I've blown several tyres at reasonable speed, and actually felt very little at all in the cars handling, and definitely no crashes, wrenching or broken wrists.

my first car was didn't have power steering...yes you needed two hands to take a corner, but I was still taught to drive with one hand on the wheel to stop me swerving everytime I changed gear. 🙄

I'm fairly OK with taking feedback on my driving but if someone told me to put two hands on the wheel they would get short shrift.

You drive instead op with your two hands

I drive with both hands on the wheel if I'm on the motorway or dual carriageway, but around town I quite often have one hand on the gearstick as the traffic is so stop start.