Nearly one in 10 people admit travelling with a drunk driver

But some 9% of those polled said they had travelled with a drunk driver and a further fifth thought they might have.

Of those, almost half said it was the only way to get home, 34% had not considered the consequences and 38% said they had a short distance to go.

Zurich Insurance's poll was based on a sample of 1,011 adult drivers.

Some 71% of those questioned agreed Britons should not be able to consume any alcohol at all before driving.

Legal status

Currently, travelling with a drunk driver is not an offence but helping someone known to be drunk to drive - for example finding their keys for them - is aiding and abetting.

A spokesman for the Department for Transport said there were no plans to introduce an offence for passengers of drink drivers.

But he added: "What we want is for passengers to urge anyone who has been drinking not to drive.

"I'm sure most people would not knowingly get in a car with someone who has been drinking or who they suspect to be over the limit."

'Serious problem'

Road safety charity Brake said it would support any moves to prosecute passengers accompanying drunk drivers.

Spokesperson Amy Bowen said: "Drink driving is a serious problem in our society. It's been on the rise for more than a decade."

She said if a law was introduced there would often be witnesses to the crime.

Enforcement

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (Rospa) said it welcomed any moves to reduce drink driving, but questioned how easy it would be to police such a law.

Spokesman Roger Vincent said it would be hard to prove that passengers had got into a car aware that the driver was over the limit.

He added that using peer pressure to stop drunk drivers would be a good idea.

"We would hope people would dissuade people getting into cars with drunk drivers," he said.