New Roundabout Rules - Give way to the left?

[richb77]

I get this almost every day going home from work.

I am ON the round about as i have to go 270 degrees on it.

Without fail EVERY single day some tool decides that i should give way when i am half way round and i have to stop.

Again without fail i get the finger (a lot of yank here) and snotty looks or mouthed abuse.

I gave up getting wound up about it am just prepared to stop every day.

Its the clock tower round about in Newmarket if anyone cares

[rallen]

emicen said:

The solution is very simple. Next time it happens;
- Dont emergency stop
- Aim square for the driver's door
- Get a replacement car on your insurance
- Give him a broken pelvis to think about

The cold hard facts of a front-in-to-side T boning at even just 30mph are that he will come off worse physically, but there are very few people on the road [thankfully if we're being honest] with the psychology outlined above.

Hence they know you will brake and will just bimble out because they cant drive worth a st / believe they are more important than everyone else / believe they are indestructible in their 4x4.

Just chalk it up to the aholery that infests our road network these days and move on, along with; the 58mph-motorway-outside-lane finger wagglers you dared to pass at 70, the bimbler who was in too great of a hurry to wait for a gap to pull out a junction in front of you but not in enough of a hurry to then go anywhere near the speed limit and, last but not least, the jibber-jabbering gossip too busy looking at their passenger whilst gobbing off to achieve more than 25mph and equally unable to stop in time for the red light you'd both have made it through if they'd been paying any attention to actually driving.

There is a solution to the last two: get in front of them and slow down to 10mph. Because these people probably never had the experience of having anyone slowing them down before.

And in your list of "aholery" I would like to add 4x4 or van drivers speeding on twisting and narrow country roads where two normal sized cars barely fit side by side.

[DervVW]

People who go left on islands and don't signal, its like cheers, I wasn't waiting, I'm just resting here....

I am horrified about the passat incident going to court. But I am not surprised.

A fella I used to work with was going home, from the road he stopped and signaled right to go on his drive, there was a queue of traffic behind him because he stopped to turn right on to his drive, as he started to leave the road to get on his drive some woman (wouldn't you guess) overtook the waiting traffic and hit him. It went to court because the insurance tried the 50/50 thing and he lost, he apparently should have looked to see it was clear.

[rallen]

lufbramatt said:

Yes my thoughts too. Was on a busy road and no-one stopped so no witnesses. Originally her insurance had offered 50:50 but I knew I was in the roght so refused and told them to take me to court. I had to go sit in a quiet spot for quite a while afterwards as if I had of seen her or her of a husband I would have gone mental. Turns out that if you're a 25 year old in a slightly modified old car and have an accident with a little old lady in a bimble mobile, you're screwed if it goes to court and you get a female judge. I wanted to appeal or something, but after 3 years I was fed up with it, and by the time it was sorted I had built up another 3 years no claims (I only lost 2 years worth that I had before the accident). At the end of the day that's why we pay insurance, st happens you just have to put it down to experience and move on.

Edited by lufbramatt on Tuesday 21st May 11:37

How do you prove that you were already in the roundabout when she pulled out? If you were speeding then it is possible that when she pulled out you were nowhere in sight. How do you prove that you even stopped at the roundabout before entering ?

A recent TV programme showed that MC footballer who drove into a family car and killed two inside. They pulled out in front of him, not his fault, but he was speeding, so partly his fault.

With the recent meteorite landing in Russia we saw on TV that plenty of Russian drivers have video cams installed under the rear view mirror for accidents and cases just like this.

[rallen]

DervVW said:

People who go left on islands and don't signal, its like cheers, I wasn't waiting, I'm just resting here....

I am horrified about the passat incident going to court. But I am not surprised.

A fella I used to work with was going home, from the road he stopped and signaled right to go on his drive, there was a queue of traffic behind him because he stopped to turn right on to his drive, as he started to leave the road to get on his drive some woman (wouldn't you guess) overtook the waiting traffic and hit him. It went to court because the insurance tried the 50/50 thing and he lost, he apparently should have looked to see it was clear.

This is a very common scenario with bikers trying to squeeze through.

[arfur sleep]

richb77 said:

I get this almost every day going home from work.

I am ON the round about as i have to go 270 degrees on it.

Without fail EVERY single day some tool decides that i should give way when i am half way round and i have to stop.

Again without fail i get the finger (a lot of yank here) and snotty looks or mouthed abuse.

I gave up getting wound up about it am just prepared to stop every day.

Its the clock tower round about in Newmarket if anyone cares

if you hadn't said Newmarket, I'd assume you were talking about the roundabout I go round everyday where exactly the same thing happens.

It's two lanes wide (but not marked) all the way around and there's exits at 6 o'clock, 9 o'clock, 12 o'clock, one at 2 o'clock and then a further one at 4 o'clock making 5 exits in total.

I enter the roundabout at the 6 o'clock position turning right and exiting at 4 o'clock. invariably someone will see me on the inside lane indicating right and somehow assume that they can simply drive through me to get to their exit forcing me to slow / stop which means i usually get a horn blast from behind or very nearly shunted as happened a couple of nights ago. i have been tempted to ram a couple of people - particularly when in the works pickup...

[DervVW]

rallen said:

DervVW said:

People who go left on islands and don't signal, its like cheers, I wasn't waiting, I'm just resting here....

I am horrified about the passat incident going to court. But I am not surprised.

A fella I used to work with was going home, from the road he stopped and signaled right to go on his drive, there was a queue of traffic behind him because he stopped to turn right on to his drive, as he started to leave the road to get on his drive some woman (wouldn't you guess) overtook the waiting traffic and hit him. It went to court because the insurance tried the 50/50 thing and he lost, he apparently should have looked to see it was clear.

This is a very common scenario with bikers trying to squeeze through.

But I'd hope most bikers would have the sense and self preservation not to plow into a right turning car with the indicators on.

[longshot]

I don't get outraged by driving like this anymore because it is so common.

If you use your lights or horn you run the risk of a nutbag killing you so I have had to accept this sort of behavior.

The day of considerate and cooperative driving are long gone.

[White-Noise]

Unbelievable! I dont understand the logic of people like this, but there is no logic of course.

I had something similar the other week. I join a roundabout which has 2 lanes, I am in the right lane as I am trurning right, that being exit 3. Van joins from exit 1 as I am going past exit 1 and I expect him to turn left. But no, we carry on around side by side. I go to leave at exit 3 but the van wants to continue round to my 4th exit. He knows what is coming, as did I, so we come to a stop at my exit and he then starts having a go at me! So we both end up leaving at my exit anyway.

I really think that people do these things on purpose. I just try to laugh it off these days because my journey would be more stressful otherwise

[Herman Toothrot]

There is one roundabout that could be on my commute that I avoid as almost everytime some cocksucker will use completely the wrong lane cutting you up or pull out on you. Numerous accidents over the years have happened some resulting in deaths. The council put up a big sign before the roundabout on the approach from one direction with a picture of the lanes. Still people get it wrong, many on purpose trying to skip past traffic. Council have not written the road names on each lane, they should just so when an accident occurs at least the person in the correct lane could take a pic to make the claims easier, idiots.

Edited by Herman Toothrot on Tuesday 21st May 12:49

[XVar]

Same thing happened to me on Friday, turning right on a roundabout indicating left to exit just as I pass the second exit (straight on) and some stupid bint pulls out in front of me causing me to slam the brakes on resulting in a 3 series embedding itself into my rear bumper. Needless to say the idiot who pulled out didn't stop, probably completely oblivious that she did anything wrong.

Luckily the car that hit me was a company car and they've got an arrangement with a local body shop so I won't be having the "more likely to be hit by things" tax applied to my policy for a no fault claim.

[matchmaker]

colonel c said:

Conversely there are those who believe that their right of way fro a roundabout begins 10 to 20 meters before they actually enter the roundabout if they are going fast enough. Then they get uptight if they have to slam on because someone entered if first. This tend to happen very often on mini roundabouts.

I was about to post exactly the same thing! Not just mini roundabouts - many smaller ones have the same problem.

[StottyZr]

DervVW said:

A fella I used to work with was going home, from the road he stopped and signaled right to go on his drive, there was a queue of traffic behind him because he stopped to turn right on to his drive, as he started to leave the road to get on his drive some woman (wouldn't you guess) overtook the waiting traffic and hit him. It went to court because the insurance tried the 50/50 thing and he lost, he apparently should have looked to see it was clear.

Odd, a friend of mine was driving his little tractor. Its old and doesn't have indicators so he signalled a right turn with his hard, as he turned into another friends drive a young girl stuffed her new car into him (and proclaimed that her dad was going to kill her as he'd just bought it for her!)

Apparently she thought the hand signal for a right turn was him waving her past!!

She was found 100% at fault almost immediately.

Her car was severly damaged, his tractor was completely unscaithed. An insurance asseser inspected it and couldn't believe that there was no damage on the tractor whatsoever especially as the front right wheel took the entire brunt of the impact

[intrepid44]

Driver of the Alfa spotted earlier: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XylzrvFRJ6Q

[DervVW]

StottyZr said:

DervVW said:

A fella I used to work with was going home, from the road he stopped and signaled right to go on his drive, there was a queue of traffic behind him because he stopped to turn right on to his drive, as he started to leave the road to get on his drive some woman (wouldn't you guess) overtook the waiting traffic and hit him. It went to court because the insurance tried the 50/50 thing and he lost, he apparently should have looked to see it was clear.

Odd, a friend of mine was driving his little tractor. Its old and doesn't have indicators so he signalled a right turn with his hard, as he turned into another friends drive a young girl stuffed her new car into him (and proclaimed that her dad was going to kill her as he'd just bought it for her!)

Apparently she thought the hand signal for a right turn was him waving her past!!

She was found 100% at fault almost immediately.

So its not even consistent.... really is luck of the draw
Her car was severly damaged, his tractor was completely unscaithed. An insurance asseser inspected it and couldn't believe that there was no damage on the tractor whatsoever especially as the front right wheel took the entire brunt of the impact

[rallen]

White-Noise said:

Unbelievable! I dont understand the logic of people like this, but there is no logic of course.

I had something similar the other week. I join a roundabout which has 2 lanes, I am in the right lane as I am trurning right, that being exit 3. Van joins from exit 1 as I am going past exit 1 and I expect him to turn left. But no, we carry on around side by side. I go to leave at exit 3 but the van wants to continue round to my 4th exit. He knows what is coming, as did I, so we come to a stop at my exit and he then starts having a go at me! So we both end up leaving at my exit anyway.

I really think that people do these things on purpose. I just try to laugh it off these days because my journey would be more stressful otherwise

Ahhh, that is why being on the inside lane is not good for you. Stay on the outside lane, indicate "left" at every exit so as to dissuade the risk takers, and blatantly carry on to your exit - it's the only way to ensure you can leave the roundabout at your exit. If you take the inside lane then you have to *beg* to be let out when your exit arrives, and vans will not generally let you.

[Hoofy]

http://youtu.be/iAgX6qlJEMc

[beko1987]

Frances The Mute said:

The other is what I call the Mexican Standoff which tends to happen more at mini-style roundabouts.
Say two of the three entrances have stopped as a result of traffic, a car is approaching the third but instead of continuing through as all of the others have stopped, they too come to a stop.
Then you have all entrances blocked and no-one prepared to move first. Inevitably, they all judder out together in syncopated stuttering before promptly jamming up the roundabout completely.

This boils my piss and happens regularly in Marlow. I'm sat there not moving (incase matey realises, moves off and into me), waiting for the bellend to my right to crack on as he should have done in the first place, as it was an empty roundabout before I came along, then a car comes up to the other entrance and does the same, all because one car doesn't know what to do.

Eventually I catch his eye, signal for him to move (aggressively or non aggressively, depending on my mood) and we carry on. Or, the third car goes straight over, and I move whilst he is blocking the knobjockey holding everything up and I give a 'you stupid person' look to the guy still sat now wondering why everyone is moving.

Grrrrrrrrr

[beanbag]

I get this daily in Spain. Drivers here have no idea. None at all.

Obviously you give way to your right, but you will regularly have cars, buses, lorries and even the police cutting you up from your right as you filter off a round about.

They are simply all st drivers and when you look at the state of the cars around here, you can work it out.

In conclusion. Spanish drivers can't drive for st and Gibraltarian drivers are 100 times worse as they do the same but seem to feel like they must do it ten times faster than the Spanish in stty barry-boy cars whilst driving across your bumper.

That and they keep their cars in a st state. You regularly see cars with bald spots down to the canvas yet the police never stop them.

I also have a dozen scrapes and bumps on my car. None of which existed when I originally came here. All happened when the car was parked and 90% happened in Morrisons car park in Gibraltar.

You guys have it easy!

[yellowjack]

T1berious said:

lufbramatt said:

Hoofy said:

lufbramatt said:

I did that once. Turns out the front corner of an old passat is a hell of a lot less forgiving than the side of a newish astra. Mine needed a new bumper iron and a indicator- £50 worth of bits an an afternoons fettling, hers needed a new door, new wing, and had to be jigged as the bottom of the A-pillar was bent. BUT after 3 years of arguing with insurance companies it finally went to court and the female judge took the words of the daft olf bint over mine. So it didn't end that well, but she ended up with 3 years of hassle which could have easily been avoided by a quick glance to the right as she pulled accross the front of me. Good job I wasn't driving a HGV, would have been a very different outcome.

So despite you having right of way, the judge said you were in the wrong?

Yep. The barrister representing me even read out the bit of the highway code that says it was her fault. She just kept saying she didn't see me and implied I was speeding (even though I had stopped at the give way before entering the roundabout, how fast does she think a 22 year old passat is?)- apparently that was a good enough excuse. I was fking livid afterwards. But you can't argue with idiots.

Edited by lufbramatt on Tuesday 21st May 10:58

This is the most frightening thing I've read in ages. W T F ?

I'm not surprised. I had to go to County Court to answer 'charges' (they're not criminal charges, thankfully) of failing to stop after an accident. Only I wasn't involved in any accident. So that's what my statement said, no more, no less. I also had a receipt from a petrol station putting me 'DeLorean/88mph' away from the location/time of the accident. My accuser then shovelled some horse-st about "it could have been later, I don't have a watch, or a dashboard clock" (despite it being a BMW 3 series, and him being a site manager, FFS) and flanneling the judge that he'd simply "presumed" the time of the accident, based on his normal arrival time at work.

My insurance company backed me, and fought it, and the legal fella representing me seemed confident of it going our (the RIGHT) way. Judge had other ideas, stating that my evidence lacked credibility (he ruled out my being allowed to refer to a diary, so I was unable to answer questions with exact dates, etc.) and decided "that on the balance of probabilities, the accident DID occur, and that again, on the balance of probabilities, I WAS the driver involved". Now I've no doubt that there was some kind of collision, in which a 'silver coloured Vauxhall Vectra' collided with this bell-end's BMW, but it wasn't mine/me. The fact that this moron took down my reg number at a set of traffic lights 2 Miles from the accident site was fine according to the Judge - after all, just how common a sight do you think silver Vectra C's are on the roads, eh?

Judgement went against me, so my insurer has to cough up for HIS damage, despite an engineer's report finding NO DAMAGE on mine, and no doubt next year I'll find that there's a 'fault claim' against me at renewal, despite the fact that I was not involved in the bloody accident.

Worst of all, it just reinforces the stereotype - management level BMW driver with crappy personalised plate, a cheap suit, and absolutely no integrity whatsoever.

To me now, BMW stands for Bloody Massive Wr!