British motorists have been warned to brace for scorching temperatures towards the end of the month as a heatwave is headed for the UK with potentially hazardous effects on road conditions.
Traffic and heavy spray on the M5 Motorway in Somerset, where rain continues to fall on a grey and wet day.
Ben Birchall
Forecasters are predicting the tropical conditions will hit Britain during the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
Motorists are being advised to take additional care when driving, in case of flash summer downpours.
Moneyshake's motoring experts warn that careless driving on wet roads could be met with a two-year prison sentence, a driving ban, as many as 11 points and an unlimited fine.
Asphalt roads can "bleed" following rain in hot weather, according Road Surface Treatments Association (RSTA).
This causes the roads to be even more slippery than if they rained on in cooler conditions.
Traffic drives through a flooded road in New Cross in south east London as a third of a month's rain could fall in just a few hours today as torrential downpours and thunderstorms hit parts of the UK.
Philip Toscano
Dry roads also are more likely to see a build up of rubber and oil residue. When it rains heavily, the water mixes with the layer of grease on the road
When it rains these substances can mix with water and create a greasy layer that can become very slippery.
"Wet roads after a prolonged hot, dry period can become slippery", Howard Robinson, RSTA chief executive told Express.co.uk.
"In addition to ensuring that their tyres are in good condition and properly inflated, motorists should slow down and drive with care."
He went on: "Just like the freezing and ice of the winter, summer’s high temperatures underline how essential it is to ensure that roads are maintained to a correct standard.
"Unfortunately, continued cutbacks to highway budgets means that councils cannot afford the necessary programmes of long-term maintenance and surface dressing to ensure pothole-free, skid resistant roads."
