MOTORISTS in the area seem to be ignoring the dangers of driving without a seatbelt or using a mobile phone when behind the wheel.

Police for south Worcestershire have revealed that drivers caught using mobile phones throughout September have nearly trebled compared with the same period last year - while seat belt offences have more than doubled.

Going back only two weeks from Tuesday, October 11 there were 28 seat-belt offences and five offences involving mobile phones in the Wychavon area alone.

The latest shocking monthly figures show that there were 177 mobile-phone offences were given £30 fixed penalties compared with 68 last year - a 160 per cent year-on-year increase.

Seat belt offences were also up by 101 per cent from 162 during September 2004 to a massive 325 this year.

"These offences are - and will remain - a key priority in out efforts to make the roads of South Worcestershire increasingly safe to travel on," said a south Worcestershire police spokesman.

"Motorists using mobile phones are known to be a major contributor to collisions.

"Therefore, they are a key focus for us in reducing careless and dangerous driving.

"We also take the flouting of seat belt regulations extremely seriously as these often result in drivers and passengers being far more badly injured in collisions and other incidents than they would have been had belts been correctly worn.

"Additionally, while there is no strictly traceable link between mobile-phone offences and seat belt offences, some incidents caused by the first can be compounded by the second."