One in five young motorists makes video calls at the wheel

♦ Almost one in five young drivers has admitted making video calls on their mobile phone while at the wheel.

Research carried out by the RAC also discovered that nearly one in 10 motorists aged 17 to 24 confessed to playing video games on their smartphone while driving.

It is thought the popularity of apps such as Facetime, Whatsapp and Snapchat has helped fuel the behaviour.

But the lack of police on the roads is also allowing drivers to get away with such reckless behaviour. The survey also found that almost a third of all drivers admitted making and receiving calls on hand-held mobile devices, an increase of 5 per cent on last year and the highest figure since 2016, when tougher penalties were introduced.

With few police patrols available to catch culprits, one option being considered is the introduction of camera technology, something that is favoured by around 80 per cent of road users.