Can you get a fine for accidentally splashing a pedestrian?

There's nothing more frustrating than running late. You might be racing to drop the kids off at school in the morning or to get to your doctor's appointment after a busy day at work.

When in a rush, you might not notice a large puddle by the side of the road and end up getting water on someone walking past. But is this illegal? We take you through whether you could get a fine if you accidentally splash a pedestrian.  

Is it illegal to splash a pedestrian?

Yes, it is illegal to splash a pedestrian with water from the road while you're driving. Splashing a pedestrian falls under Section 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 and is punishable through a Fixed Penalty Notice.

You can get a maximum fine of up to £5,000 and between three and nine penalty points on your licence if someone complains to police. One driver received a £500 fine after he splashed a mother and her children on the way to school. The court gave the new driver six points on his licence and ordered him to pay an extra £50 to the victim.

The way you deal with the situation could determine whether or not the person you splash takes it any further. You could apologise and maybe even offer to pay their dry cleaning bill. If you're found to deliberately drive through puddles to target pedestrians you could get a Public Order Offence.

What else can you get a fine for?

There's other UK driving laws that you might not be aware of – we take you through the main ones.

Beeping your horn in frustration – Your horn is there to alert other drivers of your presence not to show your anger or annoyance at someone else's driving. You also cannot sound your horn between 11.30pm and 7am unless in an emergency. You could face a fine of £30 if you do.

Driving with snow on your car – You must be able to see out of all of your car windows when driving in adverse weather conditions like snow. You could face a penalty of £60 and three penalty points on your licence if you're caught driving with snow on your car – find out more in our blog. 

Having a dirty number plate – You could receive a fine of up to £1,000 if your registration isn't clear due to having dirt on your number plate.

Texting while driving – You should be aware that you cannot text and drive. However, you might not be aware that from March 2017 fines for texting and driving are doubling under new Government rules. You'll now face a £200 on-the-spot fine and six points on your licence.  

Find out whether you'll need to tell your insurer that you need glasses to drive and whether you'll face a fine if you don't.