Drivers fined for dangerous motorway manoeuvres
Motorists caught reversing and making U-turns in bid to reach missed exits
Last updated 21st Aug 2026
Research has revealed that drivers in England and Wales are being prosecuted weekly for dangerous motorway manoeuvres including driving the wrong way, reversing and making U-turns.
In the past 30 weeks, 31 drivers faced charges for criminal offences involving driving the wrong direction on motorways.
These motorists are typically fined hundreds of pounds and often face driving bans.
The findings follow a tragic incident on the M9 in Co Kildare last Sunday, when a car crash involving wrong-way driving resulted in the deaths of five teenagers and left three women and a seven-year-old boy badly injured.
In June, Press Association analysis of National Highways data uncovered 947 reported incidents involving oncoming vehicles on motorways in England over the previous year.
Recent Court Cases
One case involved Ervis Hatellari, 38, from Woodford Green, north-east London, who was convicted for reversing a Nissan Qashqai on the M11 in Essex.
Sergeant Philip Roberts from Essex Police said he saw the car “in the hard shoulder and half in lane one of the M11, with reverse lights on”, backing up to junction five on New Year’s Eve 2025.
Upon stopping Hatellari, officers found his driving licence had been revoked and the vehicle was uninsured.
On July 27th at Chelmsford Magistrates Court, Hatellari was fined £660, banned from driving for a year, and ordered to pay £120 costs and a £264 victim surcharge.
In another case, van driver Daniel Udrescu, 57, was fined for reversing up a slip road to the M6 toll motorway in Staffordshire.
He admitted to police he was “attempting to get to Glasgow and went the wrong way” and was caught not wearing his seatbelt.
Last month at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court, Udrescu pleaded guilty, received a £445 fine, £120 in costs, and a £178 victim surcharge, along with three penalty points.
Additional Incidents
An NHS worker from Manchester, Innocent Ayodele, was apprehended in May after driving the wrong way up an M61 entry slip road during a traffic jam.
Ayodele explained to the court he was rushing home to his pregnant wife, but with nine penalty points already on his licence, he could face a ban at sentencing.
National Highways insists wrong-way driving incidents are treated seriously and acted upon promptly. Despite the high number of reports, confirmed cases remain rare.
Steve Gooding from the RAC Foundation commented: “To think anyone could drive the wrong way onto a motorway heading into fast-moving traffic is truly the stuff of nightmares.”