9:28am UK, Friday August 05, 2005

Wearing trendy flip flops could kill you, according to new research.

The fashionable footwear - ideal for the beach in hot weather - are putting the lives of road users at risk.

180 Flip Flops sandals summer footwear shoes

The killer shoes

Three in every four motorists have admitted they find it hard to drive in flip flops and road safety experts have warned that wearing the sandals in the car could be a lethal decision.

Researchers claim a flip flop, worn by millions, can easily get stuck under the pedals and cause a fatal accident, The Sun says.

Craig Martin, spokesman for Norwich Union who carried out the poll, told the newspaper: "Footwear such as flip flops are dangerous as the sole can get caught under a pedal.

"The absence of ankle support can lead to the foot slipping off the pedal altogether."

Leigh Purves, gossip columnist for the Daily Star, is among those to have had a close call while driving with designer flip flops.

She has told how, while travelling on the M1, her sandal got stuck under the brake pedal and she missed another car "by millimetres".

The Sun also says that German researchers revealed last year that 14 out of 25 pairs of flip flops they studied contained toxic chemicals known to lower sperm count in men and attack the liver, kidneys and reproductive organs.