Road rage includes various driver acts and types of behavior. Speeding or aggressive acceleration, cutting others, weaving in and out of traffic, sound the vehicle horn, flashing lights excessively, making rude gestures, shouting verbal abuse, hitting another person, throwing objects outside the vehicle all of these are considered road rage.

There are various penalties applied for it. However in reality road ragers receive not those strong penalties because in most cases road rage acts cannot be caught. If the police stop a road rager it is most likely him to receive a fine for careless driving. In the event of causing an accident of course the appropriate penalties are being issued.

Since it has been a problem for many years, it is curious to know what causes it. Why some drivers cannot hold their nerves while others drive normally? In many occasions it is caused by pure anger. Even calm and well behaved people can fall into the road rage trap. If a driver gets irritated by another driver behavior it is likely a road rage is to follow. Simple events such as not showing gratitude gesture after a driver has been let to pass first through a lane can trigger serious road rage response that is likely to lead to serious consequences for all involved in the situation.

Some specialists think that it is caused by a mental illness called intermittent explosive disorder. The intermittent explosive disorder (IED) leads to uncontrolled explosive outbursts of behaviors such as throwing objects, breaking things, inflicting physical harm, etc. These outbursts are not proportional to the provocation or can happen even without provocation. It is an uncommon disorder and some specialists even do not classify it as such although it has been used successfully in court to defend specific cases. Many believe that EID causes road rage but still there is not single and clear opinion about the subject.

Regardless of the road rage genesis it can cause a lot of damage. To prevent it a driver must follow a few simple rules. Be a courteous driver, always signal your intentions, don't tailgate, watch your high beams, observe parking lot "rules" especially in the busy hours. These might sound simple but a lot of drivers forget to follow them and become victims of road rage.