Almost 950 drivers were reported going the wrong way on England’s motorways in just a year, with police warning a growing number are doing it deliberately for social media “clicks” and “likes”.
Official figures show 15% rise
Official National Highways figures show there were 947 recorded incidents of vehicles travelling against oncoming traffic over the 12 months to 11 May 2026. That works out at around 18 wrong-way incidents a week on roads where traffic can be travelling at 70mph, and represents a 15% increase on the previous year.
Authorities say some cases are genuine mistakes caused by confusing road layouts or driver error. But they are increasingly alarmed by a deadly “clout-chasing” trend.
Police warn of deadly trend
Police chiefs warned some young men film themselves driving into oncoming traffic to rack up views on platforms such as TikTok. Officers also believe wrong-way driving is being used to taunt police - particularly in stolen cars - because standard pursuit rules can force police to back off when suspects drive into oncoming traffic due to the extreme danger to the public.
The behaviour has sparked outrage following a series of horrific head-on crashes in the UK and Ireland that left 12 people dead in a single week, including two police officers, the Belfast Telegraph reported. One passenger killed in one of the incidents was reported to have previously filmed dangerous driving clips for TikTok.
Government orders removal of videos
Ministers say they are moving to stamp the trend out as the Government has ordered social media companies to remove wrong-way driving videos, the Press Association (PA) reported. Officials reportedly say they will use powers in the Online Safety Act to punish tech firms if they don’t block and limit access to content promoting dangerous driving challenges.
TikTok has reportedly said it bans accounts and removes videos encouraging dangerous driving, but watchdogs are examining whether platforms are doing enough.
Prosecutions and court cases
Meanwhile, PA found drivers are being prosecuted at a steady rate - often for panicked, reckless manoeuvres after missing an exit. PA’s review of court papers found 31 motorists in England and Wales were charged over a 30-week period for offences including driving the wrong way, reversing along the carriageway, and performing U-turns near high-speed traffic.
Convictions typically led to fines worth hundreds of pounds, plus court costs and, in some cases, driving bans. Court examples included Ervis Hatellari, caught by Essex Police at 10pm on New Year’s Eve 2025 reversing a Nissan Qashqai along the M11, with the vehicle partly in a live lane. He was later sentenced on July 27 of this year, with police also finding his licence was revoked and he had no insurance.
Another driver, Innocent Ayodele, was stopped after driving the wrong way and told officers he “just wanted to get home” to his pregnant wife - and faced a ban with points already on his licence.
