BBK backs calls for action on dangerous driving content online
Bolt Burdon Kemp is backing calls for social media companies to take action against content that promotes and glorifies dangerous driving.
The issue has come under renewed scrutiny following the horrific collision on the A66 near Middlesbrough, in which seven people lost their lives, including two police officers. The Government has since called on social media platforms to remove content glorifying dangerous driving and has backed Ofcom taking tough action against companies that fail to protect users.
While the circumstances surrounding the A66 collision remain under investigation, the tragedy has brought wider attention to videos shared online showing dangerous and reckless driving. There is growing concern about content which presents speeding, dangerous manoeuvres and attempts to evade the police as entertainment, with videos capable of reaching large audiences online.
Current protections do not go far enough
The Online Safety Act places duties on social media companies to protect children from harmful content. This includes content that encourages, promotes or provides instructions for dangerous stunts and challenges which are highly likely to result in serious injury.
These protections are important, but the problem is not limited to children. Dangerous driving content can be viewed, shared and promoted to users of all ages, many of whom are vulnerable to influence.
BBK believes more needs to be done to address content which glorifies or encourages dangerous driving, regardless of the age of the person viewing it.
Social media companies should not allow dangerous and illegal behaviour on our roads to become a source of entertainment, engagement or online notoriety.
Road safety does not stop offline
The Government published its Road Safety Strategy in January 2026, setting a target to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on Britain’s roads by 65% by 2035. The strategy includes action on issues such as speeding, drink and drug driving, mobile phone use and enforcement.
If the Government is serious about reducing deaths and serious injuries, it must also consider the role that social media can play in encouraging and normalising dangerous behaviour behind the wheel.
Following the A66 collision, BBK is calling on the Government to consider what further action can be taken to ensure that content promoting or glorifying dangerous driving is removed from social media platforms and to make tackling this issue part of its wider work on road safety.
We have written to the Government asking what further steps it intends to take and calling for the promotion of dangerous driving online to be addressed as part of its plans to make our roads safer.
