Road rage incident

[henrygregory]

Good afternoon, I am looking for a little advice.

Whilst out with a friend this afternoon, (he was driving) we were pulling up to a roadside parking space when a motorist behind took exception to the fact that we were holding him up for one second whilst parking. He blared his horn at us and waved his arms around. In response I gave him the w**ker sign as I felt there was not need to bully someone who had indicated and given more than enough notice he was pulling up.

I collected my wallet and got out of the car to go to the shop (the reason we had pulled up) and noticed that this guy had pulled over further down the street.

He approached me in a hostile way and pushed me onto the bonnet of my friend's car and started shouting and pushing me further. I did not retaliate and told him to get away.

He grabbed my by the neck so hard that my wallet flew into the air. I managed to push him away and told him that there was CCTV recording him down the street. He was fuming because we had held him up. He then went to attack me again, at this point I told him I would be calling the police and a bystander pushed him away from me. He then promptly got back in his car and drove away.
I managed to get the registration & a picture of him and have my friend as a witness.

Though I may have aggravated him by doing the sign I did, I feel it is totally unacceptable behaviour and I would greatly appreciate it if forum users could give me their views on weather or not I should report this fuming and dangerous driver to the police.

[Captain Haddock]

Re: Road rage incident

I'd have no hesitation in calling the cops. You have been manhandled ergo it's assault.

Up to you if you want to just brush it off but consider this: that fella has proved that he's a hot-head and it's just a matter of time before he does it again. Indeed, he probably has a history of doing this and may have previous cautions or convictions for such behaviour. The idea of reporting these guys is to get them off the road.

Phone the law now.

- - - Updated - - -

Did you get the bystander's name??

[henrygregory]

Re: Road rage incident

I'd have no hesitation in calling the cops. You have been manhandled ergo it's assault.

Up to you if you want to just brush it off but consider this: that fella has proved that he's a hot-head and it's just a matter of time before he does it again. Indeed, he probably has a history of doing this and may have previous cautions or convictions for such behaviour. The idea of reporting these guys is to get them off the road.

Phone the law now.

- - - Updated - - -

Did you get the bystander's name??

Couldn't agree more with your response. Thanks for taking the time to reply.
My only worry is people like this (as you say) have probably done it before and thus know ways to get away with it. What if he twists the truth? I noticed he had two passengers, would it not be our word against him and potentially two others? There was a camera but it is one of those directional ones so it all depends which way it was facing.

[Captain Haddock]

Re: Road rage incident

Your concern should be: what if he assaulted me and disfigured me? Or incapacitated me so that I could not work for a lengthy period of time? If I were you, I'd call the police now, irrespective of whether this guy had people in his car. If they were further down th road, as you stated, they may not have seen the full version of events and could be easily caught out if submitting false evidence.

The police in that area will probably be in control of that camera. Again, did you get the bystander's name/number? I take it your friend witnessed all this?

I've been on the end of such a guy before and getting him off the road was my main concern Sadly, by the time the cops traced the car, it was a stolen one.

[henrygregory]

Re: Road rage incident

Your concern should be: what if he assaulted me and disfigured me? Or incapacitated me so that I could not work for a lengthy period of time? If I were you, I'd call the police now, irrespective of whether this guy had people in his car. If they were further down th road, as you stated, they may not have seen the full version of events and could be easily caught out if submitting false evidence.

The police in that area will probably be in control of that camera. Again, did you get the bystander's name/number? I take it your friend witnessed all this?

I've been on the end of such a guy before and getting him off the road was my main concern Sadly, by the time the cops traced the car, it was a stolen one.

Yes that is very true. I am sure if I had not done my sign maybe he would have just driven off and given us a bad look but I was not prepared to be bullied by someone in this way.

Unfortunately I did not get the name of the kind guy who stepped in and pushed him back. I was very shaken up by the incident and hurriedly walked way to get into Tesco which was where I planning to go in the first instance.

My only worry is that I have to have a clear CRB for my job. Whilst I did nothing to him and didn't act in a violent way, he seemed like such a nasty piece of work I would be so worried he would find a witness or make something up to make me in the wrong. I really don't want to put my job on the line over one nasty piece of work, but I fully appreciate that people like this should not be on the roads or streets.

[Captain Haddock]

Re: Road rage incident

How do you think that would jeopardise your job prospects?

[Captain Haddock]

Re: Road rage incident

By the sounds of it, you seem reluctant to press for the police to investigate an assault charge and that is up to you. You should still report it, though. The car may already be in the police data-base for whatever reason and having it flagged up again could lead to the police discovering a bit more about this hot-head and his connections.

Just sayin'....

[henrygregory]

Re: Road rage incident

How do you think that would jeopardise your job prospects?

I have never made such a report before and based on his awful display of emotions earlier I would be very worried that he may falsify what happend and try and make me out to be someone in the wrong. I have no experience of how the process works, but would rather not run the risk of being wrongfully accused of something I had not done, or was incapable of doing. I am in my 20s and very slim (think of a twig) this guy was probably in his mid 50s and was very large. I have never had a fight in my life, and I am not the confrontational sort, but I will stand up for what is right hence my initial gesture. There are far too many bullies out there who need to be brought to book.

[Captain Haddock]

Re: Road rage incident

See my last post, buddy. You don't have to ask for charges to be pressed but I'd certainly report the incident and supply the reggy number. If you don't, he's won.

[henrygregory]

Re: Road rage incident

See my last post, buddy. You don't have to ask for charges to be pressed but I'd certainly report the incident and supply the reggy number. If you don't, he's won.

Thanks again for your posts. I called 101 and asked if I could report an assault. I explained exactly what had happened to the officer who said they would call it common assault. He said if I were you, I would report this man as he sounds like the sort of person who may well have behaved like this before. I was just about to go ahead, and he said the next step would be for them to investigate this man with a view to arresting him and then he said that the guy would eventually know my name. I had asked if he would ever get my address and details, and the officer responded saying no but he would get your name. This has really put me off as unfortunately, I am quite well known in the area and my name and location is often featured in the local newspaper and websites. I do a lot of charity work in the area, and as such my address details and what have you are all online including on the local council website. One search for my name on google and he could find-out exactly where I live.

The officer advised me to have a think, if I wanted to press ahead, to call back and briefly re-explain the situation. I was not aware at the time that I could just report the incident. I will do so tomorrow when at work.

Thanks again for your help.