You could be slapped with a £1,000 fine and three penalty points for hanging an air freshener from your rear-view mirror

DRIVERS have been warned not to hang air fresheners, fluffy dice or football flags from their rear-view mirrors – or face hefty fines and points on your licence.

Even a sticker on your back windscreen could put you in trouble with police and lead to a fine if it’s thought to obstruct your view of the road.

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Although it’s not strictly illegal to have decorations or stickers on your windscreen, anything that is deemed to prevent you from having a full view of the road can attract a £100 on-the-spot fine and three penalty points on your licence.

And if you try to challenge the penalty in court, you could be hit with a maximum fine of £1,000.

The Highway Code states: “Windscreens and windows must be kept clean and free from obstructions to vision.”

And the Road Traffic Act says: “No person shall drive a motor vehicle on a road if he is in such a position that he cannot … have a full view of the road and traffic ahead.”

The practice can also impact your insurance if you’re involved in an accident.

Insurers aren’t likely to cover any damage or injuries sustained in a crash if your vision is impacted by decorations.

Drivers can also fail their MOT for having items hanging from their rear-vision mirror as service centres won’t approve the car until they are removed.

Regulations have become stricter since a taxi driver was fined for having furry dice and a two air fresheners hanging from their rear-view mirror when involved in a fatal collision with a pedestrian in 2008.

Rebecca Ashton, IAM RoadSmart head of driver behaviour, said: “Anything hanging from the rear-view mirror or anything placed on the windscreen could restrict the drivers view, things people use tend to vary from air fresheners and dice hanging from the mirror to fans, large sat-navs and even using the navigation on an iPad.

“Missing something because you had something obscuring your view could potentially be extremely dangerous, good driving involves exceptional observation skills, seeing things early allows you to anticipate and plan how you deal with hazards.

“We would suggest it is placed low on the windscreen, on the right hand side and if possible within the area where the windscreen wipers don’t clear. The main thing to remember is you should always try to avoid the drivers field of vision.”

Drivers have also been advised on the following ways to avoid getting ripped off when your car breaks down.

Other money saving tips include this top trick on fixing a crack on your car windscreen.

And bear in mind key tax changes in 2022 affecting petrol and diesel drivers.