A thirty something friend of the missus winds me up with her blase attitude to driving. She careers round everywhere, completely cutting corners, has no intention of ever sticking to the speed limit (and wonders why she's one more SP30 away from a ban, a fact that only applies because her hubby took one six point Gatso 'hit' for her), has zero observation or anticipatory skills (total reactive approach), and is usually on her handheld phone or searching for makeup.
This is no windup or overstatement.
If ever I comment, I get "Look, just chill out will you. What's it to you? Life's for living..."
When I'm driving her, usually at the speed limit in one of the thirty or forty MPH limits between their house and a restaurant, I get "Jeez, get a pink fluffy dice move on will you! We want to be home before Christmas".
Anyway, what did she do today?
Had her third "driving in to the back of somebody else" in eighteen months, this one whilst admitting (to hubby and my wife) that she was replying to a text she had just received at the time. Serious damage to both cars this time.
Aaargh. What will it ever take? I have long thought that education, not penalty, is the best course of action, but now firmly believe that in many cases, this is not so, and the rest of us will have to suffer as a consequence. People can only be educated if they have enough nouse to want to be educated.
BTW, to cap it all: Yes large "BOB" sticker in the back window.
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SjB
You live near Manchester don't you? I'm sure I know the person you are talking about - if not, we know some scarily familiar people.
Yep, you'll never change these people. All you can do is keep away from them and in a perverse way, hope that the next accident hurts someone she loves. That will be the only way to teach her.
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
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Sounds like a non-too-subtle blend of selfishness and lack of intelligence.
Often found travelling together.
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People who make a habit of rear ending other drivers should be ordered to have their air-bag removed and replaced by a knitting needle.
More effective than three points, I would think.
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Seeing as she has a BOB sticker then it is too late and she has already passed on her moronic genes. You could mention that one day one of her kids could step out in front of someone like her and then she might realise why she has to pay attention while driving. A child could step out in front of her and even if she wasn't driving with her head in the clouds her family and friends will assume that was the case. A court would take a very dim view of someone with an accident record like hers too.
There are an awful lot of people driving around while using mobiles. I do soooo want a loud haler when I can shout 'oi you in the get off your *&#%£$# mobile phone! I saw one at the weekend in a Golf that was driving up a country lane with phone clamped to his ear. Caused great inconvenience when he had to try and select first gear as traffic in front decided to turn right...
teabelly
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People should try and realise that cars are in reality potentialy very dangerous weapons. If you encountered someone running down the road with his finger on the trigger of a loaded shotgun, while listening to a walkman or fishing tapes out of his bag or yelling at the kids, or using a mobile phone, you would be rightly scared. Society would arrest him and remove his licence for life, before he had ever had any accident.
If his gun went off he would probably only kill one person. Yet a moment's lack of concentration in a car can wipe out a whole pavement full of pedestrians or the occupants of an oncoming car.
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She'll just carry on until she causes a fatality. Mind you, that would be someone elses fault according to her.
IMO she need knocking down a peg or two in life with a dose of bad luck. Her husband needs to wake up as well.
What sort of a mug takes on penalty points on her behalf??
Rant over!
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>If ever I comment, I get "Look, just chill out will you. What's
>it to you? Life's for living..."
I had this same response, almost word for word, from someone recently about drink-driving. It was apparently not worth spoiling the evening (by not drinking or by waiting for a taxi) just on the "off-chance" of... erm... killing someone.
You just can't win the argument, I found, about two hours later.
Life's for living, what fun would it be if we didn't take any risks?
As close a friend as she is, if I find her doing it she'll be reported. I'd rather have an enemy than a dead friend or a friend who has killed someone.
-Mark
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I very strongly believe it's about time penalties reflected the crime. I really cannot see how fines, points or even custodial sentences do anything to reeducate or rehabilitate. If someone is convicted of drunk driving- send them to A & E or the local mortuary to see what the results are. If they cannot see how they affect others lives- where is the incentive to change?
Perhaps accompanying the police to inform relatives of injury or death would also finally inject some social responsibility into these people.
Growing up in a rural area I saw a mindset of "there are no Police round here- can have a beer" instead of "what if I kill someone".
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About a month ago I was going home in the evening crawl and the woman driver in front kept looking down , not keeping her eye on the road or hands on the wheel as traffic moved forward stop / start to the lights and I realised she was busily texting. I followed her ( keeping my distance ) for about a mile until the inevitable happened and she went straight into the back of the car in front.
This attitude that the rules do not apply to me is all too prevalent these days.
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1. Do what you can to not have to be a passenger with her, your statement as witness of the inevitable accident won't endear you to her....
2. Is there a road safety course (like the Bikesafe courses for motorcycles) she might be persuaded to go on? Go in a group so it's a day out and you can make sure some things are pointed out to her?
3. Memorise her numberplate, and if you ever see it in your mirror get off the road!
Good luck, I don't envy your position.
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1. Do what you can to not have to be a passenger with her, your statement as witness of the inevitable accident won't endear you to her....
Although I'd rather not be in the car with her as the driver, I'm not worried about the witness statement, though as my wife is a "Live and let live" kinda girl, and they are good friends, it would cause some interesting "Discussions"!
2. Is there a road safety course (like the Bikesafe courses for motorcycles) she might be persuaded to go on? Go in a group so it's a day out and you can make sure some things are pointed out to her?
::Laughs::
You jest!
The reason that her husband took the speeding points was that at the time she was technically driving without a licence, and she was worried about being deported (she is not British, though he is). Talk about something like Roadcraft, and you'll get a reply that that sort of rubbish is "only for people what are interested in driving"! Not a hint of the words "road safety".
3. Memorise her numberplate, and if you ever see it in your mirror get off the road!
Yup!
What really worries me, is that as posted above, she truly is going to kill somebody one day, and it'll either be another innocent party, or the Godson sat in the back that my wife adores.
To finish off, after either the first or second "rear ender", I forget which, the front of the car was heavily damaged and the bonnet wouldn't open. What did she do? Continue to drive the car for some weeks until the garage could look at it, without a worry in the world that the radiator might have been punctured, the inner wing creased (and thus wheel alignment 'out'), or whatever. A car is treated as nothing more than the means of delivering her 'right' (hmm) to be on the road.
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Does your wife ever travel as a passenger with her?
Maybe you should encourage this madwoman to practice her acceleration skills near the local police station - anything that gets her the next three points and off the road as soon as possible has to be a good idea?
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To the lady in question and husband, everything in life is about vanity, image, the right perfume, the right designer label, the right brand and model of car.
It did cross my mind how after the next accident a wheelchair or breathing pipe in the oesophagus would fit in to this thinking...
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To the lady in question and husband, everything in life is about vanity, image, the right perfume, the right designer label, the right brand and model of car.
In which case, mention that whitewall tyres are coming back and expected to be 'the' thing in 2005.
You'll find it easier to see them coming.
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BTW, to cap it all: Yes large "BOB" sticker in the back window.
That'd be referring to the driver ...
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Don't forget if you want to remember her numberplate to see if she's behind you at any point (i.e. TU51 EMV), you've also got to remember VM3 12UT. :-P
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People like this 'friend' are the type who think drivers who obey speed limits are wimps! They are part of that 'macho' "we know best" attitude. Things such people say are: "It's not the fast drivers what cause accidents, but the slow ones" or "Now you've passed your test you can forget all that stuff they learnt ya." Male adherents to these views are often scathing about women drivers too.
By the way, I see White Van Man is still exempt from the no mobile phone while driving rule!
Cheers, Sofa Spud
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SjB does you friend actually strap her child into the car when driving?
Apart from White Van man being exempt from the mobile phone laws, many people, especially poorer people from the ethnic minorities (and I include my own brethren - orthodox jews) just leave their children on the back seat, ready to be catapulted out of the car at the first emergency stop, let along accident.
Just today, a clearly poor couple in an ancient and beaten up Proton - she in the back with baby across her knee and no seatbelts in sight anywhere. I thought children were precious to these people who have huge numbers of offspring. Why you ask them why they do it, its clear it simply doesn't occur to them that it may be dangerous - its as if the 'givens' of 30 years ago are still valid and they live in a time warp. I was left to roll around the car in the mid 1960s, but my children are strapped in like in a rally car.
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
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