Eight weird driving laws you've never heard about | GRR
If you were listening to the radio or TV during last week’s extreme record-breaking UK temperatures you couldn’t help but have been bombarded – and possibly bored – with the repeated warnings what seemed like every five minutes about the importance of drinking water, keeping well lubricated and staying cool in the shade. Good old fashioned common sense dictated that during the heatwave you didn’t leave children or pets in a vehicle with the windows shut, yet despite this logical no-brainer advise, at least one person was arrested in Britain for leaving a dog locked in a car with all of the windows closed in broad daylight.
Thankfully the majority of British motorists possess more common sense and are mostly aware of the majority of the UK driving laws, hopefully obeying the majority of them. Most of these motoring laws are logical, very straightforward and easy to follow. You know to drive on the left side of the road in the UK, wear your seatbelt, not drink and drive, and so on. However, there are a few lesser-known and more obscure rules of the road that may not be such common knowledge to all motorists. You could unintentionally end up in trouble if you break the law behind the wheel, even if you were not aware of it, so it is useful to know some of the more unusual UK driving laws you that may not have been aware of, as seen in the following little-reported examples.
Illegal: Dogs hanging their heads out of windows
Whilst it is understandably against the law to keep a dog locked in a vehicle with no air supply and the windows shut, it is not so well known that it is also illegal for your pet pooch to stick its heads out of an open car window when driving, and it would not be the dog that would be punished. You could potentially receive a £5,000 fine and up to nine points on your driving licence. There is no direct UK law that states a dog cannot stick its head out of the window, but the problem is that they can become a distraction.
If your dog does take your attention away from the road, even for a moment, then you could be charged with driving without due care and attention. The highway code states to prevent distraction, and for the safety of you and your dog, your pet should be harnessed or kept in a pet carrier when you are driving.
Illegal: Splashing pedestrians with puddles
You also might not know that you can be given more points and a fine in Britain can if you carelessly drive through a puddle and soak an innocent pedestrian on the pavement, even if it is by mistake. Splashing pedestrians is actually illegal in the UK, and doing this can be seen as careless and inconsiderate driving, which could land you with a £100 fine and 3-9 points on your licence.
Illegal: Making hand gestures from behind the wheel
Do this to a poor, unsuspecting pedestrian and there is a strong chance that they will curse and wave their fist at you. If you are in ‘control’ of a vehicle though, as may well be a common occurrence to some people, (and you may you have been guilty of it in the past or maybe even a you victim to it) and you swear at another driver or use rude hand gestures you could be fined up to £1,000 under the Crime and Disorder Act of 1998. Being guilty of road rage could also mean that you are judged to not be in full control of your vehicle, which is also a punishable offence.
Also under the umbrella of road rage, it is also illegal to drive in a selfish way, such as tailgating (driving too close behind another vehicle), failing to give way or jumping a queue in traffic.
Illegal: Lane hogging
This one is not so obscure but many drivers still forget or choose not to follow this rule. On a three-lane motorway you should stay in the left-hand lane unless you are overtaking. Failing to obey this rule could mean you are hit with a fine and three points on your licence for careless driving. If you are overtaking a slower car in front of you, you should then return to the back to the left-hand lane after doing so. Some people may not understand why middle lane hogging is bad, but if the person in the left-hand lane was travelling faster than you, they would then have to weave through 2 lanes and back again to overtake you for them to avoid undertaking.
Illegal: Warning other drivers of concealed speed cameras
You may think you are doing a good deed by warning other drivers of an upcoming speed trap, but doing this could land you with a fine of up to £100. The offence you would be found guilty of is that of obstructing a police officer in their duty. Regardless, it should be argued that you should be travelling the speed limit anyway.
Illegal: Parking against the traffic at night
While you probably don’t think too much about which direction you park, if you are parking on the side of the road at night you must not face against the direction of traffic. This is because, unlike the back of the car, there are no reflectors at the front catch the headlights of an approaching vehicle, whereas the back of the car has the rear reflectors. Without these the parked car can become a hazard as oncoming traffic may not see the parked car early enough. You can be hit with a fine of £1,000, with the risk of it being raised to £2,500 for parking this way. This rule only applies at night.
Illegal: Driving with excessively loud music
Most of us like to drive around with our music blaring, but playing it too loud can be dangerous. Loud music can be deemed a distraction, and can create excessive noise to others. Playing your music too loud can cause you to lose concentration or even make you unable to hear sirens from emergency vehicles. You could be hit with a £100 fine and three points on your licence. Again, same with letting your dog stick its head out of the window, there is no rule that is directed specifically at loud music, but you can fall into the category of not being in control of your vehicle as you are too distracted.
Illegal: Sleeping in your cars while under the influence
We all know that drink driving is a huge problem and can have a disastrous effect on people’s lives, so quite rightly it comes with huge punishments. But, even if you have no intent to drive, but you fall asleep in your car after a night of drinking, you could also be hit with a huge punishment. You would still be classed as being in charge of a motor vehicle while intoxicated and could be hit with a large fine ranging up to £2,500, ten points on your licence or even a prison sentence. So after a night out you should avoid getting back into your car for whatever reason. Just find your way home via public transport or a taxi, even sleep at a friend's house, but just do not get back in your car!
Weird laws from around the world
Although most driving laws are designed with your safety in mind, some are just downright baffling, especially overseas. Driving on the opposite side of the road has nothing on these quirky regulations! But who knows, maybe you can appreciate a few of these and wish they were implemented here in the UK. From coast to coast and around the globe, these are some of the weirdest driving laws in the world.
Feeling too lazy to wash your car? Washing your car in the street can attract a fine in France and Switzerland, while a dirty car can warrant a fine up to 2,000 roubles in Russia!
It doesn’t matter if you’ve been unfairly cut off or nearly side-swiped by the vehicle next to you. You’d better keep your temper cool and your harsh words to yourself in Rockville, Maryland, USA, because publicly cursing is illegal there. If you’re caught yelling choice words out your window, you could be fined up to $100.
Forget going through the drive-through lane and munching on some fries on your way home from work in Cyprus, as there it’s illegal to eat or drink anything while driving. Sneaking a snack could cost you a hefty fine, and that even includes sipping water!
In the USA hunters often hide in the brush and behind barriers to scout out their prey, but they can’t fire a shot from their vehicles in California and Tennessee. In both states it’s a crime to shoot an animal from your car, although for some odd reason, whales are a notable exception to the rule, though that probably won’t be too much of a concern in the landlocked state of Tennessee.
Drunk driving is illegal in many places around the world, and for good reason, as mentioned earlier. However, in Japan, it is also illegal to be a passenger in a car when the driver is drunk. Even if you are 100 per cent sober, you could get into legal trouble for riding along with a drunk driver.
Why anyone would tie a dog to the roof of a car is a mystery in itself, but in Alaska, it’s also illegal. However, the back of a pickup truck is still considered to be just fine for pooch transport, which one would have thought would potentially be more dangerous than being inside a vehicle!
Before you even drive and attack the highways with all of these possible misdemeanours, if you are still looking to pass your driving test in the easiest possible way, you’d best head over to Mexico. Getting behind the wheel over there is incredibly easy for a number of reasons. Firstly, in a large portion of the country, you do not legally have to take a practical test to get a license, just a theory test. Moreover, prior to 2018 there was no test at all. Another reason is that you can legally drive at 15 in Mexico which is younger than the majority of countries (who will not let you drive before 18).
Strange UK driving laws information courtesy of Insurance Revolution.
Images courtesy of Getty Images.