Ride Drive > Driving Tips > Third Party Perception

Third Party Perception is not a subject that needs technical know–how, nor does it need any specialist skills to master. You don’t have to have an understanding of science, maths or vehicle dynamics. This is something that every driver needs to be aware of, and should always keep in mind everywhere they go, but very seldom does. So, what is Third Party Perception?

To understand the meaning of Third Party Perception, consider the answer to a straight–forward question. What opinion will another driver, or any other ordinary person in the street, form of you as an individual by witnessing the public display you give through your driving style? If you are still having trouble with that question, let’s put it like this.

How It Can Go So Very Wrong

Paul Thompson, a fictitious character for the purposes of this scenario, is a man who generally speaking is a responsible individual behind the wheel of a car. Yes, he likes fast cars, but not having a high disposable income he has a mid–range family type vehicle. He is married with young children and holds a responsible position within the company for which he works. You might refer to him as a generally well liked, well rounded and respected chap.

One day, Paul learns that he is to be rewarded for his conscientiousness at work by the offer of a job promotion. Realising this will give him a better life style, and enhance his personal status, he is understandably excited by the news.

By the time he reaches the end of his day at the office, and has been slapped on the back for about the 40th time by yet another colleague who wants to congratulate him, he is now very excited. As he jumps into his car his mind is racing with the thought of how his wife is going to be so pleased when he breaks the news to her upon his arrival at home.

Paul drives across the office car park with a squeal of tyres, and repeats this as he exits the office car park onto the road. With his favourite rock song thumping out on his in–car entertainment system he hurries along through the traffic whilst growing ever more eager to reach his homestead.

Ten minutes into the journey, Paul suddenly comes to his senses with the thought that he is perhaps becoming a little over–exuberant and that he ought to just calm down a little. Perhaps this change in demeanour was prompted by a ‘moment’ on the road, which had caused him some alarm.

As quickly as the more sober thoughts came upon him his whole driving manner quickly changes. He reduces speed, turns down the stereo and generally takes on the air of the model driver; this being his normal self style.

Even Driving Carefully a Road Accident Happens

Thirty seconds further up the road, a careless pedestrian walks in front of Paul’s car from behind a parked van, and not having time to react, Paul drives into her, causing substantial injury. There was nothing he could have done, as only being trained at the basic level, he couldn’t have foreseen what was going to happen. The pedestrian merely timed her entry onto the road to perfection and his collision was not Paul’s fault.

By the time the Police and Ambulance service arrive on the scene, Paul is feeling pretty sickened by his situation. He doesn’t know whether to cry, scream or what to do. Overturned car in the street

He is in some distress. One of the traffic patrol officers asks him for an explanation, at which point he can only seem to manage to put a maximum of three words together at a time, as he attempts to describe how he became involved. He is in shock and the police officer leaves him in the capable hands of the paramedics

As Paul is seated in the ambulance he notices another police officer talking to other people, all of whom seem rather animated in their manner. Paul can’t hear them, but they do seem very agitated.

Paul doesn’t realise it yet, but he is now in hot water. The police officer investigating the incident is getting plenty of information about Paul’s apparent attitude and behaviour as a driver, and about how badly he had been driving further back up the road. The fact, at the time the collision occurred, he was driving very well seems irrelevant, as all the information now being given to the authorities strongly suggests otherwise.

The information the witnesses provide now begins to turn the story of the collision to a totally different colour and now, our generally careful and competent driver, starts to be looked upon as a very undesirable and antisocial individual, who seemingly deserves no better than to be taken to the nearest point of execution!

From the point when Paul left the office, until thirty–seconds before impact, he was driving in excess of the speed limit, had overtaken four other vehicles, which were travelling at the speed limit, swung his car from one lane to another, so as to weave through the traffic, and did an ‘amber gambler’ job at a set of traffic lights.

His antics overall were probably noticed by 20–30 pedestrians, the occupants of the four cars he overtook, the occupants of several other vehicles and the passengers on a public service bus. Whilst a great many people saw Paul behaving rather badly, how many took notice of the last 29–seconds of his drive? None, not one, because there was nothing remarkable or spectacular about it, because driving sensibly he did not draw attention to himself.

What Judgement Would You Make In This Case?

So, what is the investigating police officer supposed to think about Paul? Put yourself in that position and ask yourself how your judgement of this individual would be affected by all the reports from witnesses you receive? Don’t think it doesn’t happen, because it does – often!

The message here is that any driver could be behaving like an idiot, even for as little as 10–seconds of his or her journey, but during that short time many people could observe the displayed behaviour. At the end of that ‘snapshot’ in time, that driver may suddenly regain his or her senses and become the model motorist, which is the way he or she drives 99.9% of the time anyway.

However, around the corner, a collision occurs, and although our driver is a completely innocent victim, there may be no independent witnesses to the actual crash and therefore a case may be built on what is called antecedent driver behaviour.

Evidence of antecedent driving is that relating to the manner of driving up until the last point that was actually seen by a dependable witness. This means that you can be judged on your manner of driving further back up the road from the point of impact, and this may be the part of your journey that you would prefer to be forgotten.

This is a side to driving a vehicle on a public road that hardly any driver thinks about and yet it is perhaps one area that should be given top priority, as it is very important. Certainly it is a factor that could have very far reaching implications.

How Do You Fit Into Your Driving Environment?

People will do well to remember also that it is not always the manner in which a vehicle is driven that will affect public opinion, as sometimes the vehicle itself will bring its own personality to the road, and that personality can be quite negative.

There is no need to identify those vehicles by make and model, as you know very well already if it the one you drive, Subaru Impreza WRX with large spoilers and aftermarket alloy wheels

Subaru Impreza WRX with large spoilers and aftermarket alloy wheels

but suffice to say that perhaps yours has already got off to a bad start, even before you set tyre onto the road.

Be advised that if you have a car that already has a poor reputation, it does not give permission for you to set about reinforcing that reputation. If anything, the best attitude to take is that of whilst the car you have is about as welcome on the streets as fox in a chicken run you have the opportunity to show that not all who own such a machine have the same bad road manners.

So, you see, it can be the case that it isn’t just the manner in which a vehicle is driven that can create a bad impression, but the vehicle itself can then perpetuate that opinion, just because it is that vehicle. Where do you think the term, White Van Man came from?

Always make safe unobtrusive progress and drive in a smooth flowing manner. Be very conscious of your image and how you fit into the environment in which you are driving. If you do not learn anything from this page, just remember these few words

Every person you overtake is potentially a hostile witness to the crash you could have around the next bend, or otherwise out of their view.

If you drive in such a manner so as to draw attention to yourself – don’t start complaining when you get the attention when it comes from someone you would rather it didn’t.

There will always be someone who will draw the attention of others, so let that person be someone else.

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