'Lazy' drivers warned to clear frost from car windscreens as 'speechless' police target motorists

The AA has warned ‘lazy’ drivers to clear their frosty windscreens after police highlighted motorists are taking to the roads without bothering to clear them.

The warning comes as Britain suffers it’s first cold snap of the winter and some roads have been made treacherous by ice and snow.

And Northants police even took to Twitter to say that they had reported more than 15 drivers for not clearing their windscreens before setting off for work on Thursday.

Officers said they were left ‘speechless’ by the number of drivers who had not de-frosted their windows.

‘The team have reported more than 15 drivers this morning for failing to clear their vehicle windscreens before setting off! This was one of the worst I have seen for a long time,’ said Northants Police Safer Roads Team on social media.

The AA said drivers must de-frost and a spokesman criticised drivers ‘who are just too lazy to clear their windscreens’.

The AA said clearing the windscreen was covered by Rule 229 of the Highways Code and drivers could face stiff penalties if they don’t comply.

Drivers could be fined and in the worst case scenario could face jail time if failing to clean their windscreens led to a serious or fatal accident.

The spokesman added that dozens of accidents each year are caused by weather conditions, including ice and frost.

Up to 56 people were killed last year on the UK’s roads because of hazardous weather conditions and there were more than 7,000 accidents for the same reason.

Britain has been warned to expect further cold conditions over the next few days, as wells as heavy thunderstorms in some areas.

Snow has already hit parts of the UK with crashes occurring in areas of high ground.