Watch: Lane-hogging van driver followed by police for 10 miles on M6

A video shared on social media shows the dark-coloured goods vehicle travelling along the lane four near junction 13 in Staffordshire, despite often not overtaking anybody.

Sergeant Rob Powell, from the Central Motorway Police Group, said he and his colleagues will continue to enforce lane hogging and close following on motorways.

Earlier this month, research by National Highways found that nearly one in three drivers admitted to middle lane hogging on motorways. More than a fifth of those questioned said they tailgate, which the RAC described as “frightening”.

The Highway Code states drivers on motorways and dual-carriageways should use the left lane unless they are overtaking, and allow “at least a two-second gap between you and the vehicle in front on high-speed roads”.

National Highways has launched a campaign with the slogan “little changes, change everything”, which warns of the impact of middle lane hogging and tailgating.

Department for Transport figures show 198 people were killed and a further 6,730 were seriously injured in crashes on Britain’s roads in the 10 years to the end of 2022 in which a vehicle “following too close” was a contributory factor.

Offences can be prosecuted as careless driving, for which police can hand out £100 on-the-spot fines and three penalty points.