A client confided that whilst preparing for life in Spain she had read so much contradictory information on expat blogs that she had become totally confused, indeed concerned as she could no longer be sure that she was doing everything correctly
I advised her to seek, by recommendation, specialists in their field in order to get the best advice that she could. As such a specialist I comment on subjects over which I have personal experience through my work or where not, seek advice from my specialist lawyer who in turn has her “go to” sources
Inter-bike communications
A recent article of mine was in response to a client who had been fined for using communications equipment between his wife and himself whilst riding their motorbikes and wanted to know if such equipment was allowed in Spain. Twice my lawyer called Trafico firstly to check if such comms could be used on the same bike and secondly to see if inter-bike comms were allowed. On both occasions she was advised that such equipment was within the law.
However as soon as we challenged the fines Trafico decided that my client had committed an offence! Laws written in 1994 allowed the use of personal communications, but this was superseded much later by an amendment so it would seem that the advisors at Trafico had looked at the main statute and not checked for any later changes; until we wanted the fines refunded of course. The moral of the story is that specialists can and should be trusted, but despite our best efforts we may not always get the best advice which is why there is no substitute for first-hand experience
However, I sincerely apologise to any bikers who have been misled by the initial article which was written in good faith
Tailgating
Mr NJ Whiteside recently sent a letter to the editor regarding tailgating and the lack of use of indicators over here. Most of us find tailgating disturbing in a similar but less dangerous way than being collared by those boring buggers who invade our personal space during conversations so that we gradually back away until we are pinned in the corner with no escape route
Tailgaters are comfortable with the space between their car and yours as are the conversationalists, it is us that are not. So what can we do about it? Well if you are an aggressive sort, built like a brick outhouse and are not too worried about damage to your car you could try slapping on the brakes, almost certainly resulting in a collision followed by the tailgater jumping out of his car to confront you as he will see it as your fault. Don’t fancy this? No me too, so perhaps the best tactic is to allow them to pass you. On a motorway this is fairly simple as you can take the inside lane and slow down enough to allow them by. On other roads, with little overtaking space find somewhere safe to pull over so that they will go merrily on their way. If you suspect that the other driver is an aggressive sort who enjoys his “sport” make sure that he is out of site before you take off again.
I have also found that gently putting on the brakes does the trick as it reminds the driver behind of how close he is as well as making him think that the next time the brakes could be used in earnest
Indicators
Indictors are not widely used in Spain. We are not going to change this so we have to accept it as we do the shops closing in the afternoon. My advice is to allow more space around you so that unexpected manoeuvres cause you no problem and give way if unsure.
All of this can seem whimpyish and subservient but I see it as making allowances for other drivers’ imperfections and keeping myself safe