One in three drivers admit habit that could land them £100 fine and points on licence
Drivers can easily pick up bad habits after passing their test and an estimated 14 million Brits have broken this driving law without even realising.
One in three drivers admit to engaging in illegal driving habits, which could land them in serious trouble if caught by the police, including fines and points on their licence.
For many drivers, it's been years since their driving test. Even if "mirror, signal, manoeuvre" still lingers in your head, in the years since you've passed, chances are you've picked up some bad habits along the way.
While gently coasting to a stop or cornering slightly early may be a harmless mistake, there is one driving habit that's especially annoying for other road users and could have serious consequences, the Express reports.
According to a recent survey by National Highways, one in three drivers admitted to hogging the middle lane while driving on the motorway - that's nearly 14 million motorists.
Despite national campaigns highlighting just how dangerous this can actually be, many drivers still don't see the harm in it. To get a deeper understanding of the issue, it's worth revisiting your highway code and looking at rule 264.
The highway code states: "You should always drive in the left-hand lane when the road ahead is clear. If you are overtaking a number of slow-moving vehicles, you should return to the left-hand lane as soon as you are safely past."
Although hogging the middle lane may seem like an innocent mistake, it can often cause long build-ups of traffic, as drivers attempt to file into the one lane to the right, whereas if they were in the left lane, drivers would have two lanes to file around them.
The RAC has offered some explanations for why drivers tend to hog the middle lane. On their website, the motoring experts say: "It could be because practical motorway training isn’t part of the UK driving test – meaning drivers haven’t been taught how to drive on the motorway, apart from what they’ve learnt as part of the theory test."
"It could also be down to laziness – it’s easier to sit in the middle lane rather than move in and out of the inside lane."
If you're caught by police hogging the middle lane, you could face some nasty consequences. The common habit is illegal and classified under "careless driving" and can result in three points on your license and a £100 fine.
The offence falls in the same category as running a right light, tailgating and eating while driving.
The RAC added: "The new fixed penalties were intended to reduce the number of people lane hogging and carrying out other acts of careless driving on UK motorways, but it’s still prevalent today.
"With the number of traffic police falling, it’s increasingly difficult for police to fine lane hoggers, and it’s not something that can be monitored using cameras in the same way speeding can."
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