Road rage is a serious issue that endangers people every day. As if traffic isn’t already bad enough, we may come across drivers who are outright aggressive. When an accident happens because of road rage, it can cause the driver to spin past the boiling point. And innocent people who just happened to be nearby can get seriously hurt. Roadways are commonly filled with hazards already, and many of them are created by motorists. In fact, there is a survey that found 8 out of every 10 people drive aggressively on a regular basis. Aside from that, drivers may get distracted, swerve into other lanes, not use their signals, tailgate, speed, and engage in so many other behaviors that puts the safety of the public at risk.
Road rage can erupt out of nowhere and get out of hand quickly. As a car accident attorney explains, some types of road rage can actually be against the law, particularly if it causes injury to another person. Threatening to harm another or purposefully trying to injure them is unacceptable and should not be tolerated. If you observe someone exhibiting road rage against you, call police immediately and inform them of the driver’s description, vehicle details, and license plate number.
If you are in an accident with an angry driver, it may cause your temper to flare up as well. After all, if someone is being hurtful towards us, it’s only normal that we may respond in that way. But do your best to remain calm and collected against someone else’s outburst. In the event of a collision, call 911 and let the operator know that the situation is escalating and that you need protection quickly. Examples of road rage include:
- Excessive honking
- Offensive hand gestures
- Waving a weapon
- Tailgating
- Violating traffic laws
- Yelling, swearing, or threatening
- Purposefully cutting of other cars
- Driving with the intent to be intimidating
- Weaving between lanes
- Exiting vehicle to assault or yell at another driver
Road rage occurs when stress and frustration turns into anger and outright aggression. A person on the road may feel that they were wronged by you in some way, such as changing lanes in front of them or unintentionally blocking them from making a maneuver. Road rage may be unrelated to anything that is happening on the road itself. A driver may be overwhelmed at their own personal life circumstances or rushing to a destination, and then a simple interference on the road could cause them to boil over.
For some drivers, road rage may be an isolated incident where their emotions just got the best of them, or it is a habit that was formed and now is difficult to stop. Ultimately, it’s not about the raging driver and making excuses for their poor actions, it’s about the victims who suffer because that person got carried away with their anger. Anyone who was injured in an accident because of an aggressive driver may be entitled to compensation for how they suffered.
