Middle Lane Hogging 

What baffles me are the people I see joining the motorway and immediately moving into the middle lane, regardless of what's around them. The road could be completely clear and they still do it. I've even seen people sitting in the middle lane who move to the left and allow themselves to be overtaken and then move straight back into the middle. I don't get it.

What about the middle lane hoggers who do 65mph and as soon as you're forced to overtake them into the 3rd lane they suddenly floor their car? I've witnessed people going way above 80mph doing that exact thing and had to just get back into 2nd lane or 1st if available. Same thing happens 1st>2nd lane, do some people think that this is a race and the motorway is the race track or they just get triggered by something?

9:03 I think the van found themselves stuck. There wasn’t enough room to pull in without moving into your ‘braking distance gap’. He was probably expecting you to undertake and possibly you were slightly in his blind spot. My clue there is as soon as you moved out he moved in.

Thing the amuses me most about a lot of middle land hoggers is they don’t even move over during overtake in the first place. Some of them immediately perform an unexpected and risk increasing manoeuvre to get straight from the slip road to middle lane.

If I see a middle lane hogger, I tend to make an effort to show that I overtake and return to the far left lane. Never seen it work, but I try to show them without flashing.

9:30 To be fair, this is an obvious situation to read. The van driver wanted to move over to the left but was not willing to do so because that would negate the two second gap. Either you had to slow a bit or the van has to struggle to speed up. Ideally he wanted you to move into lane two so that he could slip in. Notice how the van driver indicates left only after he sees your indication right. This was not an example of lane hogging but an example of considerate driving on behalf of the van driver.

It's 3rd lane hogging on the M25 that really drives me crazy. Quite often I'm in lane 1 and they're in lane 3 with no other traffic, and I undertake them to avoid 6 lane changes!

I remember a friend getting stopped by the police for middle lane hogging on an empty motorway. They were right to be suspicious, he was just over the drink limit and lost his licence for a year.

The old "urban myth" of slow lane, middle lane, fast lane, has a lot to answer for.

One pet peev I have is when you/I are at the front of a group of cars in lane 1/2 and are aproaching a lorry or another slow vehicle, you are waiting for lane 2/3 to become clear and then when it is clear a car behind you overtakes you and the lorry. This is one of the reasons why it is really important to use both your rearview and side mirrors not just your side mirrors when overtaking.

An argument given to me by a colleague was that the middle lane is safer because there is a lane either side for "the unexpected". I told him 1) from the left lane there is the hard shoulder, and as that generally has NO traffic, thats a much safer escape route than lane 1, and 2) nothing is ever "unexpected" if you're observant enough and keeping appropriate distances.

New Highway Code rule: outside lane is reserved for Merc, Audi and BMW drivers

6:08 The road would be much better if we work together instead of trying to compete against each other.

You move from lane 1 to 2 to overtake or to allow a vehicle that's on the slip road wanting to merge onto the motorway. You DO NOT move out to lane 2 because there "*might be*" a vehicle merging onto the motorway. I could just imagine every type of vehicle moving out to lane 2st 200yds without knowing if theres anything on the slip road.

Passed my driving test on the Isle of Man 5 years ago. Been living in Manchester on and off for the past 4 years and have just started properly driving on UK roads only a month ago. Not 100% up to scratch with UK motorway etiquette so these videos are super helpful! Thank you so much Ashley. Hope I can provide some examples of some decent driving from myself in my area for your videos soon!

Space closers, perfect explanation of such a bigger problem with driving

I was told that the police where I used to live (Hertfordshire) called them members of CLOC - Centre Lane Owners Club. They were only trumped by people like that Merc at 7:30 - clearly a member of the British Outside Lane Owners Club.

At 9:13 The van wasn't middle lane hogging. It's intention was to move back into the driving lane but you should have stuck to your speed as he was overtaking you, but instead you increased your speed to leave him in an awkward position to move in.

7:07. I would have done the same as the Juke. They didn't undertake, just stayed in the lane they were already in overtaking you.

Seen a driving programme a few years ago with the reporter in a supermarket car park asking people if they “middle lane” hog. What surprised me was the amount of middle aged and older men and woman who said they had heard of it but weren’t quite sure what it was. You can guarantee these people will be guilty of middle lane hogging.

The speed limits on UK motorways and some dual carriageways is 70mph. If someone is hogging any of the overtaking lanes at a speed less than 70mph. The limit DOES NOT reduce to their speed.

The van couldn't move in because you you were too close. He was clearly trying to get in for as soon as you indicated and started to move out he moved in.

It's honestly scary how oblivious some drivers are. In the US we have a lot of 2 lane highways and there is nothing more annoying than someone camping out next to the trucks and not looking in their mirror to see the massive line they've made.

I wonder if we could have saved all that money spent on controversial smart motorways by educating/enforcing lane discipline? Where we used to have one empty lane on the left, now we have two 🤦‍♂️

POLL After overtaking would you be stupid enough to forget to check it's clear to move back into the lane to your left. A for Yes.....B for No

My pet peeve is when people call it a fast lane.

9:15 I have a diffenrent analysis on what happened with the white van: At 8:45, we can see that the speed limit is 40mph. You are driving at 32mph and the van is slowly overtaking (due to the small difference between 32 and 40mph). At 8:57, while the van is still passing, you breifly speed up to 40mph , which makes it impossible for him to finish the overtake without speeding. At 9:15, you say that he is middl lane hogging but if he decided to move back in front of you, there would be less than a second gap between you two, making it dangerous. At 9:29, your lane change allows him to move back in the left lane. And that is a big indicator to me that he was monitoring your actions, as he reacted immediately. My point is: If you increase your speed while someone is passing you , you prevent him to move back in the correct lane. I used to drive a 3.5t van with only 130bhp, believe me when I say it had very poor acceleration when fully loaded. I've had plenty of situations like this where I'm passing someone driving under the speed limit and when the speed limit increases, they just dart off into the distance instead of waiting for me to move back over and passing on the correct side.

7:00 The Juke has no fault. The Mercedes was blocking the overtake lane so no option for Juke. That's not undertaking, it's purely the Mercedes problem

Initially, the Mercedes in lane 3 was approaching Ashley in lane 2; once Ashley moved in to lane 1, the Nissan in lane 2 was approaching at speed and posed a possible risk (a question of mirror perspective vs camera FOV) if the Mercedes then moved in. However, Mercedes fails once the Nissan has passed.

It's not only on dual carriageways that there can be a problem with lane hogging. On single track roads passing places should be used to permit overtaking.

“Keep left unless overtaking” in Australia only on roads 80kmh(50mph) and over. Under that speed and too many junctions, slow moving vehicles etc. that Ashley was talking about, can’t keep enough space and unnecessary lane changing is even worse for traffic flow.

Half of London’s minicab drivers have a foreign license which they then transferred into an English one. They never had a driving lesson in the UK, and those drivers are easy to spot as they always drive in the middle no matter what. Most days they look like a train in the middle lane on the M4 on the way to Heathrow airport in the morning.

That was a very balanced and fair view on what is and isn't lane hogging Ashley. As much as lane hogging is an issue, exactly as you mention, just because another vehicle is slowing you down, that by itself is not the sole creteria for lane hogging. There is also the opposite issue in that I sense many drivers in an effort not to be labeled a lane hogger, they move back in to the left too early, cutting in on the vehicle they just overtook. By the same token, I sometimes find the driver behind me closing up even even closer to get me out of the way when I'm still not properly clear of the vehicle I've just overtaken. I don't deliberately prolong the overtake but 'm not going to move back in to the left prematurely and cut up the vehicle I just passed either. This is particularly the case if it's been raining as I don't want to spray the other vehicle either, even more so if it's a motorcycle I've just overtaken. Good point about staying out one lane on the approach to a slip road until you are sure what's going on but again some drivers don't understand this and immediately think "lane hog. Another reason to stay out in lane 2 not mentioned: A vehicle on the hard shoulder that looks as though it might be an idea to give an extra lane of clearance if you can do so safely. This is actually law in many parts of Canada and the USA if it's any kind of emergency vehicle. If you can't safely move over one lane, you must slow down to 50mph (80kph). It's called the "move over" law and was put in place to keep emergency services safer on the hard shoulder. I think we should have the same law in the UK and disappointed that there is no mention of this in the intended revisions to the rules and Highway Code.

I like the guy in the van at 5:04 sitting talking on the phone, explains a lot of things

BREAKING: Gov announces its legal to pit manoeuvre middle and outside lane hoggers A Nation rejoices

Personally if someone is in the middle or outside lane and not doing the speed limit and its safe to do so, I don't see the harm in undertaking, as the highway code states.... But it is frustrating when there's a clear run and people decide they want to rule the road.

I pass on the inside. Simples

I think it's got worse. Trouble is you get people that think you should move over because you're doing 60 (in a 70 limit) even though they can see you have a queue of cars to your left and it wouldn't be safe. I had a guy in a car do just that, used his indicators and hand gestures to moan at me for passing a queue of cars at 60. It was a 2 lane road, so what should I have done? There was no room to move in safely. My van isn't limited but I am by law only allowed to do 60 on a dual carriageway.

At 9:30 I don't think the van was lane hogging at all. He didn't want to move over to the left because he was not going much (or any faster) than you, after you accelerated when he had passed you. So he needed YOU to drop back before he could safely pull over in front of you (you would not have had 2 seconds clear nor be going slower to offset a smaller distance). You created the problem by accelerating after he has started to pass you. As soon as you dropped back he moved over to the left. He was probably aware of you and your position all the time. "Rule 168 Being overtaken. If a driver is trying to overtake you, maintain a steady course and speed, slowing down if necessary to let the vehicle pass. Never obstruct drivers who wish to pass. Speeding up or driving unpredictably while someone is overtaking you is dangerous. Drop back to maintain a two-second gap if someone overtakes and pulls into the gap in front of you." You can argue he should not have overtaken at 40 if he was not planning to acclerate later, so his driving was not perfect. But very few people are perfect drivers (i.e. none), and a good driver is forgiving about other drivers' errors unless they appear egregious or deliberate. If they are egregious or deliberate, you need to be patient and keep away from them! The road is a very bad place to look for a fight.

Lane hogging has always been an offence I know someone who was fined and endorsed in the 70s. There is also the offence of inconsiderate driving, but that’s a slightly cumbersome charge to bring.

Do instructors still teach indicating at roundabouts, specifically indicating right, then left after passing the exit before the one they want? Furthermore, do Kelloggs' give licenses away with their cereal boxes?

I motorbiked back to Kent from Devon recently and had 2 perfectly clear lanes to myself, lane 1 and 2. While all the numpties stayed in 3 and 4. It's just bizarre.

Outside ("fast") lane hoggers are just as bad as the drivers think they own the road

If I'm sat behind a lane hogger Im patient for a few mikes and then go for the undertake.

Ashley, annoying as it is when lane hogging is a caused by arrogance or oblivion, it is likely also a characteristic of nervous drivers. Showing them anything other than courtesy could create a short-term panic or long-term confidence issues.

It may be illegal but why do UK drivers make such a big deal out of it, and just pass on inside. There was a video recently where a cammer was in lane 1 with nothing in front and a hogger in 3. The cammer moved over and stuck behind him flashing his lights and beeping the horn. Self appointed Highway Patrol.

Little late to this, but I do as you do, maintain the left lane as much as I can within reason, using the middle to overtake and maintaining it if catching vehicles, I drive a Mercedes.

Great examples to showcase Ash. I used to travel some 2000 miles per week as an Agency driver and saw a huge number of MLOC (Middle Lane Owners Club) plus those on the M25 sitting in lanes 3 and/or 4; often in a "nose to tail" situation. Progress was far safer in lane 1; socially distanced from the big boys of course. Lane 2 was often clear enough to enable a safe overtake with few issues. I've not seen any improvement since the law change in 2013. If anything it seems as though people are getting a lot worse; especially on the M2 in Kent plus the Thanet Way - two lanes - where so many will refuse to drive in lane 1 despite the lack of traffic in, say, a half mile plus stretch. Until such time as the 👮‍♂️ enforce the MLOC's for their substandard driving, I don't think an improvement to lane discipline will occur 🤔. Stay safe everyone 👍👍. PS - Fun Fact: A fruit machine called "Road Hog" was released in pub and club versions back in about 1991 by a firm called Barcrest....... signs of a misspent youth lol 😆.

I found this interesting as I move over almost instantly, to see you keep out for as long as you did made me question how quick I do and maybe I should not be in such a rush to move over. I find lane discipline these days shocking and at a point where I am not caring as much because you know some self entitled person in what they deem is an expensive car which even at 100k isn't that much and not uncommon these days, I would like to see a refresher test every 10 years driving to better the quality of road safety but its probably too late when you think fsd is not that far off and then people can't complain as its being implemented for bad drivers in the first place. Good information in this video thanks

The Nissan juke was correct in passing the Marc on the left. If it was to stay as Ashley said behind, then shouldn't the one behind and the one behind him and so on stay behind. It would be like a train of hoggers. If the hogger was in lane 4 doing 50mph then all other lanes wouldn't be able to pass.

I have followed cars and vans on my local motorways where they have stayed in the third lane for 20 miles even when the road is effectively clear, they have absolutely no intention of driving in the other 2 lanes, it is common. The other blockers drive in lane 2 and are travelling above your speed, as you approach a vehicle moving more slowly the overtaking vehicle equalises speed with you and sit at your 3/4 offside rear so that you have to slow to let them crawl past. They then accelerate back to the speed they were previously doing.

There are some inconsistencies in your teaching. 11:10 "people think who are coming up quickly behind, that everyone in front of them should get out of their way" 7:07 "maybe moving to lane three behind the mercedes may be enough to make the mercedes realise they should be moving back across" Some serious conflicting messages going on there. You can also see that by around the 7 minute mark when you have moved over, that the Juke has closed the 2 second gap to the mercedes in front already, so the mercedes has no choice but to stay in lane 3 as the Juke has obviously committed to undertake. This doesn't excuse the Merc's bad lane discipline going forward, but at that point in time you can't expect it to move over.

Good educational video. I wish more people would appreciate how dangerous it really is. Lots of dangerous drivers full of themselves too arrogant to move over thinking that they're too good to move safely to the left. That's my take on it. Thanks for the video.

It’s usually Nissan Juke drivers who hog the middle lane...staring straight ahead, gripping the wheel, sat 3cm from the windscreen, oblivious. It’s more young drivers as well. I do admit to undertaking them if they’re in lane 3 of a 4 lane motorway.

Pulling out onto the motorway doing 70mph, and someone is doing 65mph or less in the middle, i stay where I am. Always drive the left lane. Most of the time, middle lane hoggers will sit for miles and miles without ever realizing the queues they cause. If you were to move over to the right lane to overtake, (although supposedly the right thing to do) it's dangerous, especially when there are cars driving over 70 mph on each others bumpers trying to get past. Why would I want to join the melee? I also just stay in the left lane. Moving left to overtake is Illegal, and to be avoided, but if traveling in the left lane with a middle lane hogger ahead and cars passing on the right, again I will stay left, because the left lane is also 70mph (its not the slow lane)AND I am in the correct lane! I would need to make 4 lane changes to pass a lane hogger (2 right & 2 left)

To many people believe that once they've reached the speed limit they shouldn't move until it's time to exit

Having been a 'professional' driver in a sign written van for over 10 years, I learned to chill out and not let bad drivers, traffic etc wind me up. But this is the one thing I just can't let go of.

how about when 2 lorries hog lanes 1 & 2 at 55mph for miles, what's going on there?

The left hand lane is predominantly filled with HGVs when I drive up the M1 from Watford up to Peak District, the HGVs almost always without fail pull into middle or 2nd lane without indicating, it’s a dangerous, and it’s happened multiple times, so I tend to give them, and the potential surrounding chaos a wide berth, give myself plenty of space & stopping distance in case of accidents, which means I tend to fluctuate between the 2 outside lanes when traffic is dense, when we come to clear roads I do move into the left lane.

Lane discipline in France and Belgium is fantastic

I agree with everything you’ve said. In heavy traffic, over zealous lane changing can cause more danger and impede traffic flow. With each lane change there is risk attached. However, if there is time to safely let an impatient driver by, it can be better to let them by rather than stubbornly making them wait, thus further infuriating them into making potentially dangerous decisions.

The one thumbs down on the video must be an entitled lane hogger 😂

8:52 The van comes into view overtaking you ar walking speed. 9:07 You move up a gear, excellerated up to the vans speed. You obstructed the van from moving back into lane 1. You could have shown a rear view of the van to let us see where the van was before it was alongside you.

7:00 was interesting. I suspect the Merc didn’t pull into lane 2 because the Nissan was approaching quickly and not being helpful in making it clear that it was safe to move across. If I were the Merc, I’d have indicated to pull into lane 3, but I would be wary of the approaching vehicle. Absolutely right that the Nissan should have moved to lane 3.

Thank you for this video. I wasn't sure if when you should pull back into the left lane when you have traffic in the left lane ahead that you're approaching. As I understand it, if you're approaching the car in front and will reach it in a reasonable amount of time, then you should stay in that lane until you overtake.

On a motorbike if I'm in the right lane appropriately overtaking there will always be someone who wants to break the speed limit and go faster so they'll come real close to me trying to get me to move back over to the left (which I can't because I'm overtaking) - it is very intimidating because if the vehicle does make a mistake and hits me from the rear, well it's game over for me

Just when the van passed you why did you increase your speed? He was trying to move into lane 1 so you should have stayed at the speed you were doing when it was passing and let him move in.

Great advice. Some gantrys down south are starting to remind people to keep left unless overtaking which is nice to see. Out of curiosity @Ashley Neal, have you ever read ‘Roadcraft’? Would be interested to hear your views on it.

Here in Poland, I myself at least do not encounter much mid lane hoggers, not outside of the cities at least (in the city traffic it's a different story ofc.) but we have an opposite issue- people trying their best to make you move over for them on any fast moving road, as in flashing headlights for you to drive faster and/ or trying to push you off the road to then step on the brakes to "teach you a lesson" for getting in the way of the road king...

Van was driving perfectly fine.

The Nissan Juke should not undertake. It should move out behind the Merc. You now have the Nissan in lane 3 with another 20 cars in lane 2 doing exactly the same. I suppose those in lane 1 should also go over to lane 3? That is not the way people should be driving on motorways.

Can tell this guy gets super annoyed when driving his car

i passed my test in april '96 and driving now is a lot different to back then. There was NOBODY middle lane hogging back then on the motorways where as, if you was to drive on a motorway today for example, you stand a 90% chance of finding someone sitting in lane 2 or 3, and (I am not picking on minicab drivers when I say this but based on experience especially on the M25), most of them have a private hire badge in the back window (a round disc). I have seen them enter the motorway from the slip road and immediatly go in to lane 2 for no reason and just sit there with cars and vans being forced in to lane 3 while lane 1 is empty

9:00 You are the problem why the van is not moving into the left lane. The van has limited acceleration and you are not giving enough room for him to return to the left. That's why he proceed returning the left lane the second you signal right.

the white enterprise van at ~ 9:30 can he truly be called lane hogging? he can’t move to the left as he’s too close to your car, he’d have to accelerate. obviously he should be going faster than you but it often happens that cars on the left prevent someone moving into a gap. he moves over as soon as you signal and vacate the space, not sure he’s done all that much wrong

9:47 hire van? Maybe not use to the blind spot? Or not having a rear view mirror? Takes a while to get use to bigger vans if you're use to a car, maybe that's why they didn't pull in sooner?

Also when driving on multiple lane roads when overtaking you also need to be aware of your own vehicle , ie size and engine ability . You may not be able to overtake if going uphill say if your vehicle is not capable of such a manoeuvre. So if you are in such a vehicle this needs to be taken into account too . But some very sound advice . Wonder how many actually listen .👍

Bear in mind the Enterprise was a rental van, so the driver may not have been confident in using their side mirrors only...?

I used the knowledge from this video two or three times on my trip to the lakes yesterday, overtaking correctly when coming across middle lane hoggers. One even flashed his lights and gave a hand gesture at me as I passed. If he'd been in the left lane and not going 55 to begin with, I wouldn't have to!

On a slightly different point I don't understand drivers who drive in lane one literally 3 or 4 yards behind an HGV leaving themselves no time to react. Are they too scared to overtake or are they just trying to slipstream and save fuel?

I would add that anticiptation is important, both of your own situation and that of others. If you're afraid that you won't be able to get back out of lane 1 then you need to get better at anticipating what will happen and that can mean moving out before you need to when there is a gap and not waiting to the last minute. Secondly, we need to make it easy for others to move out, so keep an eye on vehicles in front approaching other vehicles, move over before they indicate as some people may wait until you've passed and then get stuck.

Between the lorry and the van there was a 23 second gap. That is plenty of time for you to move in and let the white van overtake you.

I think in most cases drivers doing this on motorways are unfamiliar with the road, and don't want re-directed off the motorway. I would also say most who are flying past on the outside are generally speeding, and breaking a few rules also. Not saying you should lane hog. If there are allot of slip roads, and lorrys or other slower moving traffic on the inside lane, its somethimes justified.

good revisions to the law BUT without traffic Police enforcing the law the offences will continue. More traffic cops please.

Asked a bunch of 40+ years olds which lane of the motorway they drive in primarily. Nearly all of them said middle. When I asked “even if the 1st lane is clear?”, some said they then move over but most referred to it as “the slow lane”. Says to me that this problem is taught from generation to generation because I’ve never been told it’s ‘the slow lane’ by my instructor of friends around the same age as me (30). Would make sense to put everyone over 40 through a theory test, firstly so it forces them to read the hot to date Highway Code and secondly to target the questions specifically at scenarios like this to educate them. So they’re forced to learn the correct way. They could include other helpful questions like who has priority through traffic calming measures? Who should give way on hills? Should you turn your headlights off when parked and facing oncoming traffic? What is a zip merge or ant merge? Should you use up both lanes up to the point of merging? What is the national speed limit for single carriage and dual carriage roads? Might end up with a roads full of people with fully functioning brain cells this way.

This is good information. I've definitely lane hogged a lot in the past and realise my mistake now!

Completely agree with all your points... The one thing i think doesn't help and doesn't get talked about enough is the quality of the roads particularly on heavy transport routes. I live just off the M27 which is a massive cargo route to parts of the south from the docks in Southampton and the left hand lane is in most parts in terrible condition. Pot holes, sunken parts of road that can bounce your car off course and other damage caused in part by the heavy loads and increased ware taken by the left hand lane, and partly caused by the govts (both national and local) lack of maintenance and budget for repairs. I can understand why some people, especially those with low profile tyres and stiffer shocks, would try to avoid the left lane as much as possible because of the damage some of those potholes could cause to their car let alone the discomfort. Not to excuse it because middle lane hogging causes so much traffic build up, essentially funnelling an entire 3 lane motorway through one lane, but i can understand peoples apprehension about spending longer periods in that left lane.

These people are fully paid up members of CLODS (Centre Lane Owner and Drivers Society). The prime objective and vision of CLODS is to find a way of entering and leaving the motorway without using the left hand lane!!

It's not just the middle lane of three-lane roads, a lot of people just seem to plant themselves in the outside lane of four-lane dual carriageways and not move out of it for miles

Another good video Ashley and on a subject that I see nearly every day, even on 4 lane motorways, these creatures now plonk themselves in lane 3. I think this is just another aspect of the anti social driving culture we now have in the UK which is the result (probably) of the lack of Police presence on our roads, together with red light jumping and road rage. Not sure where this is all going to end

I live in Milton Keynes, and we have multiple dual carridge ways, and the number if people that right loans hog is huge!

They always seem oblivious and I know you shouldn’t but even a polite flash of lights is usually met with a one finger salute . On a different note how about doing a video on seating position as some drivers appear to be so reclined they would be better looking out sunroof than windscreen

I remember driving in Australia nearly 20 years ago: road signs warned of penalties if you didn't keep left when it's clear.

7:02 In Italy the law allows you to stay on your lane and pass the car driving on the wrong lane. What the Juke did would be completely legit in Italy, becuase it is occupying the right lane and the Mercedes is not.

When I was learning to drive (40 yrs ago) I was told more than once that on a Motorway, Lane 1 was for doing 50mph, Lane 2 for 60mph and Lane 3 was the "fast lane". Its like a "Goldilocks" situation, Lane 1 too slow, Lane 3 too fast, Lane 2 just right. The 2013 law has made no difference IMO.

Of all the videos on RU-vid Ashley is the only instructor who correctly said that undertaking is legal. Why is that?

This video has helped me. I'm newly passed and did my first motorway driving last weekend. One thing I was concious of is feeling like I was middle lane hogging after overtaking 1 vehicle even though there were more slower vehicles in lane 1 further ahead. To me, it felt unnecessary to move over, so I didn't. It happened again later on, but this time a faster car was behind me so I did move back to lane 1 for like 15 seconds. Thanks for the confidence there, at the time I thought I was doing the correct thing but then had doubts when I thought about it after.

If there's nothing in front or behind then how is driving in the middle lane called "lane hogging".

One of the reasons to middle lane hog is not getting stuck behind a breaking down van doing 19 mph with the left turn signal on for 2 miles and a panic stopping HGV about to turn your nissan micra into a crumpled ball of steel. First few times on motorway by myself. I was tired and just wanted to chill in the left lane. Choices: nip round on the hard shoulder, but didn't know when the van driver with the left indicator was going to pull off the road. Put hazard warning lights on - seemed to work. Traffic got out into the middle lane early instead of screeching for the motorway dawdlers.

Reason why m25 is always grid lock