Motorist fined for shaving while driving

A man in Oxford has been stopped and fined by police for shaving while at the wheel of his car, in a crackdown on careless driving in the city.

Spot checks on motorists saw a further 54 drivers issued with penalty notices by officers on Thursday morning.

Amongst those stopped, one driver was found to be reading a book at the wheel, while another had been taking dictation from a hands-free phone using a notepad and pen.

A total of 35 drivers and passengers were found not to be wearing seat belts and 14 were caught using their mobile phones.

All were issued with a £60 fine and three penalty points on their licence.

Speaking to the BBC, PC Mike Pilling, of Thames Valley Police, said: "It is clear that a number of people are still prepared to put themselves and others at risk by flouting road traffic laws designed to protect them from injury.

"We will continue to target this type of behaviour with more road safety checks at all times of the day."

The police activity comes as new statistics show that 2.4 million UK motorists – equating to one in 20 adults – were involved in a road collision last year.

Figures from the Department of Transport show that 800,000 of these people were injured, highlighting the need for increased scrutiny of driver behaviour, particularly over the summer months where traffic increases by over two per cent.