One in seven Britons eats at the wheel

One in seven Britons eats at the wheel

Britons are becoming ''dashboard diners'' with many regularly eating while on the road, according to a survey.

As many as 28% now grab food while travelling at least once a week, with almost half of 18-24-year-olds eating in their vehicles weekly, the poll by the Calor Gas company found.

The practice is rarer for those over 55, with only 21% of this age group being dashboard diners.

Those under 24 have the messiest cars, with around a third admitting to having food packaging and empty bottles littering the bottoms of their cars.

Contrastingly, nearly four in five over-55s say they always keep their car clean.

Drivers in the north-east of England stop for a bite while on the road the most, while the region where the number of drivers eating on the move has risen the most in the last five years is the West Midlands.

Gaynor Willmott from Calor said: ''Identifying the trend of 'dashboard diners' has been very revealing for us as it shows just how busy people's lifestyles are today, with many people grabbing food while on the go.''

The survey involved 2,000 adults.