Self Improvement Expert

In the UK there seems to be some confusion about how to signal certains messages to other drivers. I'm not talking about messages of frustration or anger, just normal messages such as "thanks". Different people have different ways of conveying these messages with different flashes of different lights. But I think that a uniform code would be much better and would allow for more varied messages to be conveyed.

I'm not trying to say that the signals that I use should be the ones that other people use because of some sort of arrogance. I'm just suggesting that other people adopt these "standards" to make life easier. In most cases I've tried to use a reasoned argument about why a particular method should be used, where none seems more logical than another, I've just picked one at random to try to get this standardisation rolling.

One of the key problems of signalling messages is that the road user that you are trying to signal to might not be in front of you. They are frequently behind you so a different method may be needed for signalling to the front and to the rear.

The most obvious message to want to convey (and the most frequent) is "thanks". A lot of people consider a single flash of the headlights to be a good way to signal thanks to the front. Some people use a double flash.

However, if it's late at night, and let's say I've stopped and yielded my right of way to allow an oncoming car to squeeze through a narrow gap. It's night, so my eyes are accustomed to the dark. Oncoming dipped headlights already affect my vision. Then a driver, that I've been nice enough to yield my right of way to, waits until he is right in front of me and blinds me with his main beam. That does say "thank you". That says "f*** you". It is the single worst way of saying thank you and means that I am now very unlikely to yield my right of way at night.

OK, so what about signaling to the rear. There seems to be two main ways that people do this. Either a flash of the hazard warning lights, or a left-right-left (or right-left-right) flash of the indicators. Personally, I think the hard warning lights are better used for another message, so I prefer the alternate flashing of indicators.

Using the indicators to signal thanks like this can also be used to signal to the front. However, there is an important exception. At night, it can be difficult to see your indicators when your headlights are on (depending on your car's headlight design). In fact, some cars are so bad that it is almost impossible to see your indicators when the headlights are on. I'm not sure how this is legal but there are many unsafe design features that I've noticed in various car designs, but that's a whole other topic.

So, instead, I propose a single, split second "flashing off" of your headlights. Not long enough to have any impact on your visibility.

At this point I'd also like to reiterate a piece of legal advice that you should all be aware of. Never signal that you are yielding your right of way, and never signal for another driver to "go", regardless of your preferred signaling method for this. If you are yielding for another driver, just stop and wait for them to work it out. If you signal for another driver to go, and they have an accident, it can be (and has been) successfully argued in court that it was your fault. By signaling for another driver to go, you are saying that you have verified that it is safe for him to do so and are therefore taking legal responsibility for the consequences. Arguing that he should have checked himself do not work because by signaling him to go, you have put him on the spot to act. Urgency is implied, and hence diminished responsibility. So, just don't do it. No flashing, no hand signals.

The next message to discuss is probably the most important. No matter how impeccable our driving is, there are times when all of us screw up and we need to say "sorry". At this point, I'd just like to say that if you don't remember ever wanting to say sorry, if you genuinely don't remember ever screwing up, nearly causing an accident, or just being stupid and getting in the way, then you really shouldn't be driving at all. You are not a perfect driver, just an arrogant one. You need to know how to say sorry in a car.

What better way than flashing your hazard warning lights. The perfect way of acknowledging that have been a hazard to other drivers and that you are sorry for it.

If I'm angry at another driver for potentially putting me, my family and my car in danger. A simple flash of the hazard warning lights is likely to be enough to stop me wanting to get out of my car to thump you. At least you'll have acknowledged your fault which suggests that you may learn from this experience and be better in the future.

I suggest a single message of "check your lights" to cover "dip your lights you moron, you're blinding me", "switch your foglights off, you're dazzling me", "switch you're lights on you muppet, haven't you wondered why you can't see anything?", "switch your foglights on, haven't you noticed the poor visibility?" and any other lights related message. I suggest a double flash of your headlights to signal to the front and a double flash of your foglights to signal to the rear. You are basically signaling "lights!"

I propose these as starter messages. If you have any other useful messages you'd like to convey along with any suggestions on methods to convey that message, please contact me.