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Tailgating is one of the most dangerous driving violations in the United States. It leaves drivers without enough time to react to changing roadway conditions, puts others at risk, and carries the potential for hefty financial penalties. To help ensure your safety (and to help you avoid tailgating tickets in Pennsylvania), we’ve compiled some information on Pennsylvania’s tailgating laws.

What Are the Laws on Following Too Closely in Pennsylvania?

Tailgating is also known as “following too closely.” Following too closely means just what it says: that you were following another vehicle too closely. But what exactly is “too closely” when it comes to following distances? We’ll cover that in more detail later in this article. Suffice to say for now that tailgating is when you follow so closely behind another vehicle that you create a hazard for yourself and/or others.

Types of Tailgaters

Although most people think of aggressive drivers when they think of habitual tailgaters, there are many other types of tailgaters too. Some drivers are ignorant of the law, others just know that they’re breaking it, and so on. If you fall into any of these categories, don’t fret! We’ve included a few tips and tricks at the end of this article to help you break these habits.

Ignorant Drivers

Ignorant drivers are drivers who don’t know the law. That is, they’re ignorant of the law. They might not know that tailgating is illegal or they might not know what tailgating is. One way or another, they have yet to learn the importance of tailgating laws and how to avoid convictions for breaking them. These drivers are often newer to driving and lacking in experience.

Unaware Drivers

Unaware drivers are drivers who know the law but don’t know that they’re breaking it. They might know that tailgating is illegal but might not know that what they’re doing qualifies as tailgating. These drivers often have a little more driving experience than ignorant drivers but are still considered to be generally inexperienced drivers.

Distracted Drivers

Distracted drivers are drivers who allow themselves to be distracted while driving. Distractions come in a variety of forms, including cell phone usage and fiddling with the radio. Not only can distracted driving cause you to accidentally tailgate other drivers, it can get you a ticket in its own right. That means you can end up getting two tickets rather than just the one.

Complacent Drivers

Complacent drivers are drivers who know that tailgating is illegal and how to avoid it but don’t mind doing it anyway. Many of them think that the odds of getting into a car accident don’t apply to them, either because they’re better than the average driver or that the risk has been exaggerated. In either case, this bad habit can take some time to break.

Aggressive Drivers

Aggressive drivers are drivers who let their anger get the best of them. They get frustrated and angry at other drivers for things like driving too slowly in the fast lane or cutting them off, so they decide to vent by tailgating those other drivers. This is both incredibly dangerous and highly illegal—in many cases, this activity leads to road rage or reckless driving charges.

How Much Is a Tailgating Ticket in Pennsylvania?

Tailgating tickets in Pennsylvania tend to have low fines of only around $25. However, the fine is only a fraction of the total financial liability that you will be required to pay. For example, you’ll also have to pay a mandatory $100 penalty due to court costs. You might also have to pay other fees or penalties as well.

In addition to those court-mandated costs, you’ll likely have to pay 22.5% more for car insurance over the next five years (totalling an average of $1,379.25). 

How Far Apart Do the Cars Need To Be To Not Be Considered Tailgating?

There is no officially mandated distance in terms of feet or meters between each car. The reason for that is the fact that such a distance would be immensely difficult to identify, enforce, and estimate—not to mention the safe distance between vehicles varies with speed. Rather, you are required by law to maintain a reasonable and prudent following distance.

What that means is that you must provide enough space between your vehicle and the one in front of you so as not to pose a hazard to the occupants of the other vehicle. A good rule of thumb is to practice the Three Second Rule, which states to leave three seconds of space between your vehicle and the one in front of you.

How To Avoid a Tailgating Ticket

If you read the information above and thought, “Gee, that sounds a bit too much like me,” we have a few tips that can help you break those habits. On the other hand, if you’re not like any of the types of tailgaters above, these tricks will help to keep you that way. Try the tips and tricks described below to maintain compliance with Pennsylvania’s tailgating laws.

Focus on the Road

Focusing on the road is generally never a bad idea. When you’re aware of and focused on the traffic around you, your odds of accidentally tailgating somebody reduce dramatically. After all, it’s easiest to avoid tailgating tickets when you can stop yourself from committing tailgating violations.

Drive With the Flow of Traffic

Driving the same speed as the rest of nearby traffic can help to prevent you from tailgating the vehicles in front of you. This ensures that the distance between your vehicles will not shorten over time. Adaptive cruise control is a great feature for ensuring you stay at the same speed as the vehicle in front of you. That being said, make sure not to speed. “I was just following the flow of traffic” is typically not a valid legal excuse when charged with speeding.

Give Yourself Enough Time

Let’s talk a little more about the Three Second Rule. Keeping three seconds between your vehicle and the vehicles in front of you can help to ensure that you have enough time to adjust to changing roadway conditions (which generally qualifies as reasonable and prudent spacing).

To do so, pick a landmark. It could be anything (e.g., a street light, a sign, a road marking, etc.). When the vehicle in front of you passes it, start counting the seconds. Once you pass it, stop counting the seconds. If you’ve counted three or more seconds, you’re maintaining a reasonable and prudent following distance. Anything less than that and you might be breaking Pennsylvania’s tailgating laws.

Drive in the Correct Lane

The correct lane depends on how fast you’re driving, how many lanes there are, and a few other factors. Generally speaking, you should only drive in the left-most lane when conducting a legal passing maneuver and slower traffic should keep right. With that in mind, if slower traffic is in the right-most lane, merge into the lane to the left to pass it rather than tailgating the slower drivers.

What Is Brake Checking?

Brake checking is the practice of slamming on the brakes for no apparent reason other than to harass the driver immediately behind you. This practice is often performed by people who are frustrated with somebody for tailgating them. But the line between road frustration and road rage is often quite thin.

Brake checking is both incredibly dangerous and illegal in Pennsylvania. In many cases, the brake-checker will find themselves being labeled at-fault in a car accident regardless of whether the other driver was indeed tailgating them. That’s because brake checking is often considered an act of road rage or reckless driving.

If you’ve received a ticket related to tailgating or brake checking, know that you have options. Contact a lawyer on the WinIt app or at www.appwinit.com to start working on your defense today.