IMPOLITE DRIVING HABITS

1. Driving with full beam lights on when passing other cars

Almost 9 out of every 10 drivers find motorists driving with full beam lights on when passing other cars the most annoying driving habit, but what are the official rules on this behaviour?

Is it illegal?

Simply having full beam lights switched on isn’t an illegal act, however, it’s all about context. 

If you’re on an unlit road and there are no other drivers around, you can use your full-beam headlights, but if you’re driving past or towards drivers coming in the other direction, you should use dipped headlights.

Using full-beam headlights when other drivers are nearby can be considered an offence, especially if you cause another driver to become dazzled, which could lead to incidents. This can result in points on your licence for driving without due care and attention.

2. Drivers not using their indicators

86% of the participants in our survey found that drivers not using their indicators was one of the most annoying behaviours on the road.

Is it illegal?

Again, context matters. You should always indicate, but if there are no other road users or pedestrians nearby who would benefit from knowing about your intentions, then not indicating would not be considered an offence.

However, if you fail to indicate and it causes an accident or collision, then that could be considered a punishable offence.

3. Not pulling over for an emergency vehicle

A large number of drivers (86%) found it annoying that they had witnessed other drivers not pulling over or making way for emergency vehicles.

Is it illegal?

If you’re purposefully impeding an emergency vehicle (ambulance, police vehicle or fire engine), then you could be charged with driving without due care and attention, however, there is no law under the Road Traffic Act stating drivers need to give way to emergency vehicles. 

It’s important not to panic when an emergency vehicle needs you to give way. You still need to assess your surroundings and make sure it’s safe to pull over or move out of the way. Even if you have perfectly good intentions, you can get fined for pulling over into a bus lane, a yellow box junction or for driving through a red light when giving way to emergency vehicles.

Our findings also revealed that the most disliked driving habits differed across the country. In England, driving with full-beam headlights on when passing other cars emerged as the most disliked impolite behaviour (86%).

Meanwhile, in Northern Ireland and Scotland, not stopping at a pedestrian crossing was identified as the most frustrating behaviour, with 92% and 89% of respondents respectively voting for it. In Wales, not using indicators topped the list of annoying habits (87%).

Motorway habits UK drivers find the most annoying

Our data also revealed that frustrations can vary depending on the driving situation. Here are the top 5 most frustrating habits exhibited by drivers, specifically while on the motorway.

1. Tailgating (driving too close to the car in front)

29% of UK drivers find tailgating the most frustrating habit, specifically when driving on the motorway.

Is it illegal?

Yes, tailgating is illegal in the UK as it is classed as a careless driving offence. Doing this can result in 3 penalty points and a £100 fine – with more severe punishment a possibility if your tailgating leads to a serious accident.

On motorways, it’s even more important to keep a safe distance between yourself and the driver in front of you, as it’ll take longer for everyone to react when driving at high speeds. If you find yourself being tailgated by someone else, try not to let their behaviour negatively affect your driving. Instead, continue driving safely, keep a safe distance between your vehicle and the one in front of you, and if possible, allow the tailgating vehicle to overtake you if it’s safe to do so.

2. Middle lane hogging (unnecessarily sitting in the middle lane of the motorway)

Middle lane hogging was one of the most frustrating motorway behaviours, with 21% of our survey participants in agreement.

Is it illegal?

Yes, middle-lane hogging is illegal. Like tailgating, it falls under the careless driving offences category, meaning you’ll get 3 penalty points and a £100 fine – with more severe punishment a possibility if your middle lane hogging leads to a serious accident.

3. Talking on a mobile phone while driving

21% of drivers are annoyed to see other drivers talking on a mobile phone while driving on the motorway.

Is it illegal?

Yes, it’s illegal even just to hold and use a phone, tablet, sat nav, or any similar device that can send or receive data while driving, let alone call someone on it.

The government website states that ‘you must not text, make calls, take photos or videos, or browse the web’ on any device.

And, the law still applies even if you’re:

• Stopped at traffic lights
• Queuing in traffic
• Supervising a learner driver
• Driving a car that automatically turns off the engine when you stop moving
• Holding and using a device that’s offline or in flight mode

If caught, you can get 6 penalty points on your licence and a £200 fine (this can go as high as £2,500 if you’re driving a lorry or bus). If you’re caught and you passed your driving test in the last 2 years, you could lose your licence. In some cases, you may also be banned from driving.

How often do Brits witness these impolite driving habits? 

As well as investigating which impolite driving habits the UK dislikes, we also uncovered how frequently drivers witness these behaviours occurring on the road. 

The most prevalent impolite habits are as follows.

The most impolite driving habits that are commonly seen are tailgating, not using indicators, and lane hogging. 

It's not all bad news though, 58% of drivers surveyed have also seen motorists regularly thanking other motorists.

Other polite behaviours witnessed include allowing pedestrians to cross the road (43% have seen other road users do this often) and stopping to help someone who has broken down (4% of people surveyed said they had often seen another driver do this).

Some other interesting findings include:

• Regionally, residents in Northern Ireland are most likely to stop to help a driver who’s broken down (9% of those surveyed from Northern Ireland witnessed this happening)
• Motorists in Scotland are the least likely to allow pedestrians to cross the road (only 39% witnessed this happening compared to 43% of drivers in England)
• One in five drivers often see motorists littering out of their car 

Is it illegal to litter out of your car?

It is an offence to litter from your car – with a fine of up to £150 if you’re caught. You can still be fined as the driver of a vehicle even if it’s a passenger that litters.

Who are the drivers guilty of displaying bad manners on the road? 

A large portion of us like to believe we're courteous when driving, but according to the data, numerous drivers observe rude behaviour regularly. With this in mind, we decided to ask UK drivers directly what they think about their driving behaviour. These are the results:

• 88% of drivers consider themselves polite and well-mannered on the road but only 49% believe other drivers demonstrate good manners
• 92% of females perceive themselves as polite drivers on the road, in contrast to 86% of men
• 35% have regretted displaying bad manners whilst driving

Where in the UK is home to the politest car drivers? 

As cars make up the majority of vehicles on UK roads, we asked respondents if they agree the majority of car drivers demonstrate polite behaviours. Here are the results: 

Based on the survey results, Northern Ireland stands out as the nation with the politest drivers in the UK, with 53% of respondents agreeing most local drivers demonstrate good manners on the road. Following closely, Scotland takes second place with 51%, while England and Wales share the least polite position with 49%.

In England, the North East and South West boast the most polite drivers (51%), whereas the East Midlands falls short in displaying good manners on the road (46%).

Overall, the North of the country is considered to display more polite behaviour on the road compared to the South. 

Which road users are typically the most well-mannered? 

In terms of road users, lorry drivers are perceived to exhibit the best manners on the road, with 56% of drivers in agreement. They are followed by car drivers at 49% and pedestrians at 46%.

On the other end of the spectrum, van drivers were regarded as the least polite, followed by cyclists and sports car drivers.

Of course, it’s perfectly normal to have the odd off-day where our driving isn’t as good, but it’s important not to let that spill over into bad behaviours or even road rage.

Check out our guide for avoiding road rage if you’d like some expert advice.

Sources:

There were 13,400 responses to the AA Yonder September survey between 11th - 19th September 2023.