A death occurred this past weekend in Milwaukee apparently caused by Road Rage! We read stories almost every day or see incredible videos of someone driving aggressively against another. Eight out of 10 drivers surveyed in the AAA Foundation’s annual Traffic Safety culture Index rank aggressive driving as a “serious” or “extremely serious” risk that jeopardizes their safety.

They’re right. Aggressive driving accounts for more than half of all traffic fatalities.

Although “road rage” incidents provide some of the most shocking views of aggressive driving, many common behaviors, including racing, tailgating, failing to observe signs and regulations, and seeking confrontations with other drivers, all qualify as potentially aggressive behaviors. Speeding is one of the most prevalent aggressive behaviors. AAA Foundation studies show that speeding is a factor in one-third of all fatal crashes.

Despite a strong public awareness and understanding of aggressive driving, many people are willing to excuse aggressive behaviors. Half of all drivers in our Traffic Safety Culture Index admitted to exceeding both neighborhood and highway speed limits by more than 15% in the past 30 days. More remarkable, a quarter of drivers say they consider speeding acceptable.

As more people understand the many behaviors that can become aggressive and see their own behavior in a new light, they can begin to adopt safer driving practices and manage risk more effectively. Do you think you are a calm driver? Here’s a AAA quiz that might help!

From an insurance point of view, if you get charged with aggressive driving or road rage, that ticket most likely would be Reckless Driving if you’re not taken to jail first. Once an insurance company gets that information on their annual review of your auto insurance or possibly sooner, that would be cause for policy non-renewal or added surcharges that could double or triple your premium. For many reasons, it’s just not worth it to drive in any way that would put you, your passenger or another party in danger because you get upset at someone else’s action. And of course, if you are the victim of road rage, get the tag number and place a 911 call. Let the authorities handle it – not you!