To Wave or Not to Wave? By Attorney George Tofaute

Picture yourself sitting in traffic and seeing another driver wanting to get your attention so that you will let them cut into the lane or across it. We have all been there. Do you pretend not to see them? Some do. Or, do you want to be a really "nice guy" or "nice gal" and wave them through?   The next time this happens to you, THINK TWICE about what you wind up doing and remember this column.

You could wind up being sued and being in a financial mess. WHY? Because of a new decision by the Indiana Court of Appeals in the case of   KEY vs. HAMILTON which is found in the legal publication  963  N. E.  2nd  573.  

In this case, a motorist who had waved another motorist through an intersection was found liable to the motorist they had waved through who then got hit by a third driver.  The Court held that by waving the other driver through, he had created a "legal relationship"  between the parties and that the harm to the injured driver was reasonably anticipated.

  

Please, DON'T DO IT. With this decision in the books (unless the Indiana Supreme Court changes this rule), being a polite and courteous person could wind up costing you a lot more than just the angry glare of an impatient motorist!