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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To overtake on motorway left hand lane?

522 replies

brasty · 31/10/2017 22:49

DP says I am. But I hate when you are on a busy motorway, and someone is sitting in the middle lane, and will not move to the left hand lane, even though it is empty. While at the same time the right hand lane is packed with cars, making it hard to pull out into the right hand lane and still leave decent distances. So I have occasionally just overtaken the middle lane hogger in the left hand lane. I know the Highway Code says you should not, but sometimes it seems the safest option.

OP posts:
FlowerPot1234 · 02/11/2017 20:26

DillyDally15
Well done double! The last two paragraphs clear up the debate nicely I think.

One response gives information contrary to the advice given by countless other police, police driving instructors and advanced drivers, and that clears up the debate nicely does it? Hmm

The singular "policeman/woman" who replied didn't even get the law correct. All my posts have been about passing on the inside and not undertaking so I actually couldn't give a hoot about debating undertaking, but simply as a point of accuracy, this "policeman/woman" doesn't even know their law - it is not an offence to undertake, that is simply untrue.

NoWordForFluffy · 02/11/2017 21:28

But that police officer IS talking about passing on the inside. Double's question was very clearly worded to state what she meant.

DillyDally15 · 02/11/2017 21:56

and that clears up the debate nicely does it?

Yep. The many sources and opinions would lead me to conclude that you are in fact, a massive wind up, who misread an article and made herself look very silly. Then continued to insist it was 'ambiguous and unclear' to detract from that fact that she can't even interpret a simple article. Nope. You got it WRONG!

iwishihadmorehoursintheday · 02/11/2017 21:58

I have been known to do this Blush --because the bloody middle lane hoggers do my head in--

DillyDally15 · 02/11/2017 21:58

One response gives information contrary to the advice given by countless other police, police driving instructors and advanced drivers

Please provide us with some evidence of this. Police will drive by different rules if they are in an emergency. It's the reason why they have sirens- to make people aware! The same rules don't follow for members of the public. Otherwise wtf is the HC for?!

DillyDally15 · 02/11/2017 22:21

I've come back to say, for the sake of my sanity and everybody else's, let's just agree to disagree. There's clearly no budging our views on this and I think it's futile trying! G'night people.

HamSandWitches · 03/11/2017 00:51

it is not an offence to undertake, that is simply untrue

No it's not but careless driving is an offence and dangerous driving is an offence

FlowerPot1234 · 03/11/2017 10:22

HamSandWitches
it is not an offence to undertake, that is simply untrue
No it's not but careless driving is an offence and dangerous driving is an offence

So I wish people would stop lying and claiming that passing on the inside and undertaking are offences and illegal. They are not. Yes, careless driving and dangerous driving are offences, I agree.

FlowerPot1234 · 03/11/2017 10:37

My god, if ever there was a case for the study of confirmation bias, this is it. Shock

I relay how I, as an advanced driver was trained and advised by a guy who trains police drivers in their everyday (not only in emergencies DillyDally, where the heck did that come from?) correct defensive driving techniques, I pass on information and insight from officers, police driving instructors, advanced driver observers and examiners who all agree that passing on the inside is allowed, I highlight that the internet is full of discussions on this topic and the majority of advanced drivers agree passing on the inside is allowed, I point to the law which does not say passing on the inside is illegal no matter how many of you lie and claim it is, I ask you to cite the law that says it is an offence and not one of you can, I point out that not one single prosecution has taken place for passing on the inside as an offence, I highlight that the advisory paragraphs in the HC are not the law and are designed to advise you how you should drive and not how you must drive since it allows you to use judgement for the safety and stability of your vehicle precisely because the HC does not provide every scenario of what you should do when you come across a law-breaker such as middle lane road hogs and yet still some of you scour the internet desperately to search for a post or a reply which confirms your preconception that passing on the inside is illegal or wrong. Absolutely desperate to ignore anything which is against what you want to believe. Search and search until you find one piece that agrees with you. Ridiculous.

The aggression and bulling on here has been unbelievable. The hypocrisy, merely laughable. The obsession with section 268 almost manic and your avoidance of section 264 notably laughable: "You should always drive in the left-hand lane when the road ahead is clear." What about that then? Stay in your lane, keep your car stable, do not put yourself at additional risk by overtaking a middle lane hogg, and proceed with caution to pass the hogger on the inside staying in your lane as per 264. But oh no, let's pretend that doesn't exist eh?

That post with the reply from the single police officer is a joke. The officer claims undertaking is an offence, when it is not. They can't even get that right. The poster asks the question on a clear motorway and the officer says they would charge them. They would be laughed out of court. I ask again - show me one single case where this correct (ie cautious) passing on the inside of a middle lane road hog on a clear motorway scenario has been successfully prosecuted. Just one. Show us all and make your case then.

Drivers pass on the inside every second of every day. They are passing middle lane road hogs, or passing slower moving vehicles and queues in the lanes to their right. Some of you claim the 'congestion' word in 268 means 'crawling' when it doesn't. So how come thousands of drivers pass others on the inside in both variable and non-variable speed limit motorways every day without one single prosecution? It is called maintaining your speed and driving correctly. But some of you believe drivers should be constantly slamming on their brakes each time the lane to their right suddenly slows just so you don't end up passing on the inside. Can you imagine the chaos? Crazy.

I am sorry that some of you do not want to believe something is different to what you thought. I am sorry that some of you don't understand the premise of the Highway Code nor how it should be used and how it was written. I am sorry that some of you do not understand the law. I am sorry that all the information given here doesn't give you the answer you crave. I am sorry that you find my disagreeing of you so deserving of ad hominem attacks and vulgar language against me and relentless animosity despite my attempts to be polite and still answer those who have insulted me horribly.

I cannot understand the behaviour of some of you, I really can't. Go ahead and believe what you will. But stop claiming manoevres on the road are illegal when they are not, and if some of us pass middle lane hoggers on the inside with caution to maintain our driving line, stick to 264, and not waste our time or risk ourselves by doing 4-6 lane changes, we shall continue to do so.

I repeat one final time. Nowhere does it say it is illegal to pass on the inside. Nowhere. And the authorities took away the offence of undertaking in 1972, and passing on the inside is allowed, for a reason.

Humpsfor20yards · 03/11/2017 10:49

Hey, don't say I didn't warn you everyone!

Grin
NerrSnerr · 03/11/2017 11:08

Stand down everyone. Flower has spoken, they’re right and the majority of people on this thread are wrong. Consider yourselves told.

I can’t see the point in trying to challenge what they say as it’s like talking to a brick wall.

HamSandWitches · 03/11/2017 11:10

I just think it's dangerous and for people to say it's fine to do it when the advice is not to do it.

If everyone passed on the right and left it would be bedlam with people weaving in and out.

It's advised to pass on the right not the left. People expect this as is explained in the HWC.

If people want to undertake on the left then they cause an accident which results in them being charged with dangerous or careless driving then so be it, that's there choice.

Most people are not advanced drivers nor do they do an advanced driver course unless they have to. I still don't believe advanced drivers advocated undertaking. I will go with what the police recommended which has been posted multiple time in the thread. If you undertake you may be committing an offence which I interpret as do not undertake on the left as the hwc states otherwise,if you do you may be charged with an offence which I interpret as being charged with a dangerous or careless driving offence.

This threads just going round in circles. People drive how they want so if they want to undetake on the left then so be it.

disahsterdahling · 03/11/2017 11:11

If you are in the left hand lane and you come across a middle lane sitter, you can, arguably, pass them on the left. Though I would be nervous about doing so in case they suddenly move over.

BUT if you are in the middle lane and you come across a middle lane sitter, you should move out into the outside lane and pass on the right. Not move over to the left lane to undertake. Even though people do, because they either want to make a point, or they're too scared to go in the outside lane for some reason.

They are two different situations.

Sparklingbrook · 03/11/2017 11:12

Oh blimey is this still going? Are people resorting to brick walls of text to get their point across? Grin

Don't be a knob on the motorway. That's about it.

Be safe.

HamSandWitches · 03/11/2017 11:25

I agree dish reading back I've written pass when I should have written undertake

Lethaldrizzle · 03/11/2017 11:29

It's not something I can get particularly worked up about either way but then I think road rage is a complete waste of time!

thenightsky · 03/11/2017 11:46

It is called maintaining your speed and driving correctly. But some of you believe drivers should be constantly slamming on their brakes each time the lane to their right suddenly slows just so you don't end up passing on the inside. Can you imagine the chaos? Crazy

DH does this... braking to avoid passing on the left. Does my noddle in. And he gets all cross with me when I'm driving and cruise past a middle lane hogger, even though the road ahead of me is clear! Think I'll have to show him Flowerpot's post.

Lethaldrizzle · 03/11/2017 11:54

The problem is most of the pps on this thread think they are superior drivers. As soon as you start thinking you're better than other road users that's when the problems start. Just chill out, don't get angry and don't flash your lights.

wasonthelist · 03/11/2017 13:13

The problem is most of the pps on this thread think they are superior drivers

Exactly - and also somewhere in the Venn diagram are posters who KNOW what is "dangerous" and "causes accidents".

NoWordForFluffy · 03/11/2017 13:20

People on the internet can claim to be anything. Who knows if Flowerpot has genuinely had the best driver training known to man, given by the best police instructors in the world. Or if they're just a GF who wants people to bite!

The accusations of bullying are ridiculous and laughable, however.

I'm going with agree to disagree too at this point as it's got a bit too angsty round here!

Lethaldrizzle · 03/11/2017 13:43

But it's not just flowerpot, most people on this thread claim to know best - if that is the case, it just makes the roads full of angry arrogant drivers. You can't possibly all be better than everyone else!

wasonthelist · 03/11/2017 14:50

There are broadly two (maybe 3) camps though-
1)undertaking/passing on left etc is the cause of all road deaths, misogyny, wars etc
2) it’s fine, not dangerous or illegal
3) I know I probably shouldn’t but it’s hard to resist and only possible because others aren’t doing it right either

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