DRIVERS are being urged to slow down when it rains after 37 people were seriously hurt on wet roads in Wiltshire last year - the second highest number in the South West.

Overall, 15 people were killed and nearly 300 seriously injured in the region in 2015.

Highways England has launched a new safety campaign warning drivers that 'when it rains, it kills', after their latest statistics showed that people are 30 times more likely to be killed or seriously injured on the roads in rain than in snow.

Wiltshire had the second highest number of serious injuries caused by accidents in wet weather (37), coming second only to Cornwall (41). Southampton had 18.

Wiltshire also reported one death due to wet weather conditions, but had no serious injuries or deaths related to driving in snow.

The figures also revealed that travelling too fast for weather conditions was identified as a factor in 1 in 9 road deaths in Great Britain last year, as drivers failed to adjust their driving in response to road conditions.

In total, 197 people died on roads during rainfall in Great Britain last year and 2,721 suffered a serious injury, compared to 14 deaths and 153 serious injuries during fog, and 2 deaths and 95 serious injuries during snow.

The campaign warns that even driving within the speed limit in wet weather could be dangerous if drivers don’t allow extra space between them and the vehicle in front. The message is being reinforced with rain-activated paint messages visible to people leaving motorway services when it is raining.

Highways England’s head of road safety, Richard Leonard, said: “Most of us already slow down in snow, ice or fog but when it rains we consider it normal so don’t adapt our driving.

“The sad fact is that 2,918 people were killed or seriously injured on the roads in Great Britain when it was raining last year.

“Rain makes it harder for tyres to grip the road and harder for drivers to see ahead – significantly increasing the chances of being involved in a collision. We’ve launched our new campaign to make drivers aware of the dangers and to stay safe.”