Friendly Collision Center

Slow Drivers Are Dangerous Too

Most people assume that speeding is taboo, but driving slow is just fine as long as they're not exceeding the posted limit. From time to time at Friendly Collision Center, we hear about somebody in Dallas, TX who received a ticket for speeding while driving below the listed speed limit. The concept of a "Basic Speed Law" is something a lot of us have not heard of or thought about since the days when we took Driver's Education in high school. But it is an issue and something you should know about, so we're happy to be sharing this information on our blog.

Basic speed laws vary from state-to-state, but most of them require drivers to operate a vehicle at a "careful and sensible speed that is not greater than nor less than what is considered reasonable and proper," principally considering factors including the "traffic, surface, and width of the highway and any other conditions that exist."

If a police officer sees that you are driving at any speed that he or she deems to unsafe or reckless under the given conditions, you may be pulled over and cited for violated the basic speed law. It's a moving violation and it will cost you some of your hard-earned cash in fines.

95% of the time, most speed-related moving violations involve exceeding the speed limit, but some people (seniors and young drivers) will occasionally get tickets for driving too slow.

In most cases, if a slow driver caused an accident, that is when a slow driver will likely be cited by law enforcement. But I have also heard of a handful of slow driving moving violations that were given to someone who had not been in any type of accident. In this particular scenario, the police officer observed them driving well below the speed limit in conditions he felt did not warrant it.

If you do get a ticket for driving slowly and want to fight it in court, please keep in mind that this is strictly a civil infraction which means that you won't get the old "beyond reasonable doubt," burden of proof to defend you. All the officer has to simply show is that more likely than not you were driving too slowly for the conditions.

Obviously, you always have to drive as carefully and prudently as you possibly can. But remember this and remember it well--driving slowly is a crime and will be enforced if you're caught.

Sources: CNN, Yahoo and USA Today