How should you respond to a tailgater?

• A. Speed up to intimidate the tailgater.
• B. Maintain the same following distance.
• C. Increase your following distance to allow a safe margin; avoid speeding up.
• D. Move into a different lane abruptly.

Answer: (C)

When a tailgater is close behind, your safest move is to create more space in front of your vehicle by increasing your following distance. This added margin gives you more time to react if the traffic ahead slows or stops, reducing the chance of a rear-end collision. It also helps calm the situation because you’re not abruptly changing speed to provoke the tailgater. Do not speed up to try to intimidate them, since that just narrows the safety margin and raises risk. Maintaining the same distance provides no extra safety, and moving into another lane abruptly can surprise other drivers and lead to a crash. If it’s safe, you can signal and move to the right lane to let the tailgater pass. In good practice, aim for at least a two- to three-second following distance, increasing it in adverse conditions.