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Drivers warned over middle lane hogging leading to fines
However, there is a common error many drivers make daily, which research shows 94% do not know can lead to fines.
Middle lane hogging, when drivers sit in the middle lane of a dual carriageway or motorway despite the inside lane being empty, is something many drivers are seen doing every day.
Not only is it common, but many drivers say it is among their biggest frustrations on the road, and even undertake in some scenarios, which is also frowned upon.
What does the Highway Code say about middle lane hogging?
Rule 264 of the Highway Code states that drivers must keep in the left lane unless overtaking.
It adds that if you are overtaking, you should return to the left lane when it is safe to do so.
It also warns about stationary traffic on the hard shoulder.
It adds: “Be aware of emergency services, traffic officers, recovery workers and other people or vehicles stopped on the hard shoulder or in an emergency area.
“If you are driving in the left lane, and it is safe to do so, you should move into the adjacent lane to create more space between your vehicle and the people and stopped vehicles.”
New research from Nextbase found that three in five UK drivers don’t know middle lane hogging is illegal, while 94% are unaware it can lead to a £100 fine and three penalty points.
One in six drivers also admits they naturally gravitate towards the middle lane on a clear road.
Bryn Brooker, Head of Road Safety at Nextbase, said: “Middle lane driving doesn’t get the same attention as using a phone at the wheel or tailgating, but the risks are still high.
“When drivers sit in the middle lane unnecessarily, others are forced into overtaking manoeuvres they wouldn’t otherwise need to make, and that creates danger.
“The fact that most people don’t even know it’s illegal means it goes unchallenged every day on Britain’s motorways.”
Nextbase also found that drivers actually see middle lane hogging as one of the most frustrating and dangerous habits on the road, with 53% saying they believe it is more dangerous than using a mobile phone while driving.
Meanwhile, new data from vehicle finance provider First Response Finance, also found that 24% of drivers said that it was their most common cause of road rage.
Drivers warned over middle lane hogging leading to fines
Drivers have been warned that middle lane hogging can actually lead to being fined.
George Penny, EV Expert at The Solar Co, said: “Staying in the middle lane on a motorway when the inside lane is clear is not just potentially frustrating for other drivers, it’s against the law.
“Under legislation introduced in 2013, officers can hand out an on-the-spot penalty of up to £100 and three penalty points if you’re caught unnecessarily occupying the middle lane.
“Remaining in the middle lane can clog motorways and force other drivers into potentially dangerous overtaking manoeuvres.”
Drivers have also been debating what they think is worse between middle lane hogging and undertaking.
In a post on the r/drivingUK group on Reddit, drivers were asked to share their thoughts on both.
One wrote: “Middle lane [is worse], lack of due care and attention, people undertake because they’re frustrated.
“Except lorries that get stuck behind them.
“Solve middle lane issues and undertaking also goes away.”
Another agreed, saying: “Middle land hogging creates congestion, delaying hundreds of other road users and forces other users to navigate around them with unnecessary lane changes, and encourages more dangerous driving such as undertaking.
“Undertaking is on the surface more dangerous, but if it weren’t for lane hoggers people wouldn’t undertake, so lane hoggers are worse.”
A third added: “Undertaking is wilful disobedience at this point.
“I don’t care whether it’s legal or not, if the police and government aren’t going to get a grip of the issue then I’m undertaking for the foreseeable future.”
The Highway Code states that you should not overtake on the left or move to a lane on your left to overtake.
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However, it adds: “In congested conditions, where adjacent lanes of traffic are moving at similar speeds, traffic in left-hand lanes may sometimes be moving faster than traffic to the right.
“In these conditions, you may keep up with the traffic in your lane even if this means passing traffic in the lane to your right.
“Do not weave in and out of lanes to overtake.”
What do you think is worse, middle lane hogging or undertaking? Let us know in the comments.
On Wednesday, September 2, it was the Concours judging and private viewings to dominate the agenda for the day.
Twelve Concours classes were held across almost a century of motoring, including The Golden Age of Motoring, 100 Years of Carrrozzeria Touring, La Dolce Vita, 60 Years of the Lamborghini Miura and Passione Ferrari.
Two new classes also made their debut for 2026, Rare Breeds of the Digital Age and Hypercar Heaven, which recognise the growing importance of contemporary performance cars within the international collector market.
Judging will take place across Wednesday and Thursday, with the show field bringing together a 70-strong collection of classics, supercars and hypercars from around the world.
Some of the cars include Aa Maserati 8C 3000, Alfa Romeo Sprint Berlinetta, a one-off Maserati 3500GT Spyder Prototipo by Vignale, a very early Porsche 356 Split Window Coupé, Aston Martin DB3S, Lamborghini Miura P400S, Bizzarrini 5300GT, Ferrari 250 GT Series 1 Cabriolet, Bugatti EB110 Prototype, Aston Martin Valiant Prototype and the extraordinary Bugatti Bolide, one of just 40 produced worldwide.
Helen Pike has decided to step down as Master of Magdalen College School at the end of the 2026/27 academic year, the school in east Oxford announced in March.
MCS is one of the top performing schools in the country, ranking in the top 20 independent secondary schools in The Sunday Times Parent Power Schools Guide 2026.
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The new academic year will start next week, with Ms Pike preparing for one more year in charge before she hands over to her successor, who will take over in September 2027.
The first female Master at MCS, Ms Pike guided the board of governors to one of the most significant decisions in the school’s history, to become fully co-educational from 2027.
While there has been a co-educational sixth form at the school for 15 years, the school last month announced it will become fully co-educational over the coming decade.
Ms Pike said earlier: “I love MCS, and it is a perennial privilege to lead this remarkable school.
“Being Master of MCS is a brilliant job, and I am declaring my intention early in order to give MCS the very best opportunity to find the right Master for September 2027. I shall continue to do all in my power to further the fortunes of this wonderful school until then.
“I look forward to a new phase in my own professional life, one that builds on all that I have enjoyed and achieved in my career during the past 30 years.
“Having encouraged many cohorts of pupils to take sensible risks and to do something creative and different when the time feels right, I am doing just that.”
During Ms Pike’s tenure, MCS has been recognised as a Top 20 Independent School and South East School of the Year by the Sunday Times and won Independent School of the Year for Social Mobility.
Thanking her in his letter to the school community, chair of governors, Bob Price, said earlier this year: “Helen is an outstanding leader and will go with our sincere gratitude and warm thanks for her exceptional headship.
“She will leave the school in excellent shape for her successor.”
Recruitment for a replacement for Ms Pike is now under way.
Last month, Ms Pike congratulated pupils on their “outstanding success” in this year’s A-Level exams, after more than a quarter of pupils (43) achieved three A*s or more and 25 secured all A*s.
In total, 39 pupils from the 2026 cohort are heading to Oxbridge, while 22 have secured places to study medicine.
As part of the school’s expansion plans, MCS is preparing to build a new Science, Library and Partnerships building.
A spokeswoman said the new building will offer an exciting opportunity to reimagine the senior school site as staff look ahead to full co-education.
She added earlier: “With a vision to create a sector-leading science building in the centre of Oxford, the development will enable us to support an ambitious and forward-looking science curriculum, expanding to the emerging and rapidly advancing areas of robotics, AI and Big Data.”
Holding banners which read ‘For f**k’s sake, just stop oil’, the demonstrators took to the road in Parliament Square at noon today (Wednesday, September 2).
This was as Andy Burnham faced his first Prime Minister’s Questions, and many of the protestors glued themselves to the road.
The group demanded that the UK government stop approving all further oil and gas developments, and sign a Fossil Fuel Treaty to stop oil and gas extraction.
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Just Stop Oil say that the police are expected to arrest all those blocking the road, and that one lane has been left free of glued-on action takers to permit access for emergency vehicles.
Andy Burnham is due to make a decision on whether to allow more drilling for oil and gas in the North Sea.
Reverend James Crote, a Baptist Minister and grandfather from Chesterton near Bicester, said: “Today is my grandson’s first birthday. I have to take action for the sake of his future.
The 69-year-old added: “The government has been dilly-dallying about whether to say yes or no to the Rosebank oil field but, if we want a future for our children, there is no choice – it has to say ‘no’.
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“I am here as a Christian Minister because the Church has to speak out and demand that the government stops approving further oil and gas developments now. It’s time for us all to say ‘For God’s sake, Just Stop Oil’.”
Data from the Met Office indicates that 2026 was the hottest summer in UK recorded history, beating 2025, which was the previous hottest summer on record.
2026 was also one of the driest summers on record, delivering record-low food harvests.
Climbing temperatures have triggered wildfires across the country, and national fire chiefs said the wildfire risk facing the UK is “like nothing we have seen before”.
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Taking action, grandmother Victoria Ann Lynch-Staunton from Leamington Spa, said: “What is happening is beyond a tragedy.”
The 71-year-old added: “I beg everyone to join Just Stop Oil or governments will continue to prioritise endless growth and corporate profit over billions of lives – yours and your children.
“Wake up and smell the coffin. It is the responsibility of all of us to act now!”
A Just Stop Oil spokesperson said today: “We are all Just Stop Oil.
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“Every single person who fears deadly wildfires, devastating droughts, and spiralling food shortages is Just Stop Oil.
“The first duty of government is to keep the public safe – but by greenlighting oil and gas drilling, they endanger our survival while corporates and billionaires laugh their way to the bank.
“Every one of us feels alone and powerless in the face of this insanity, but we know there is massive political and public support for our demand.
“So we’re inviting everyone to join us at an online call on 3rd October 2026 – because it’s when we work together that we are powerful and win.”
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