A series of new weather warnings have been issued for large swathes of the country, with Scotland set to be worst hit.

An amber snow alert is in place for north-eastern Scotland - including Aberdeen and Inverness - until midnight.

The Met Office said this was likely to trigger power cuts and could affect mobile phone coverage.

It said it expected drivers to be left stranded, with flights and rail travel likely to be hit by cancellations and a "good chance" some rural communities will be cut off.

Meanwhile, motorists in some parts of England are being urged to only travel if "absolutely essential" after freezing weather led to dozens of road accidents.

A separate alert for northern Scotland, in place until 9am on Wednesday, suggests road closures are also possible.

In Wales, Devon and Cornwall, the West Midlands, the North West, south-western Scotland and Northern Ireland, more yellow ice and snow warnings in effect until 10am on Wednesday suggest roads and railways will be hit by delays.

A major incident has been declared in Somerset after a double-decker bus overturned in a crash involving a motorcycle this morning.

And AA spokesman Tony Rich said call-outs had surged by a quarter over recent days.

"The current weather conditions can lead to a deterioration of our road surfaces, resulting in an increase in pothole-related breakdowns," he said,

"Over the last few days, we have seen our number of roadside tasks increase by 25% to around 12,500 per day.

"We advise drivers to adjust their speed to suit the conditions, especially when driving on wet or icy roads and to leave more room between their car and the one in front."

He added that motorists should ensure they have enough supplies - including warm clothing, food and a flask containing hot drinks - in case they get stuck during the blast of wintry weather."

Avon and Somerset Police received more than 100 reports of road-related incidents in the space of just five hours on Monday night - with treacherous conditions causing most of them.

Between 6pm and 11pm, a total of 53 collisions were reported to the force, and seven of these incidents reportedly resulted in injuries.

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Superintendent Mark Runacres said: "If travel is necessary, we ask the public to take extreme caution and allow additional time to travel.

"We have seen a significantly higher number of road-related collisions and incidents in the past 12 hours, which has increased the demand on police resources."

Britons are being urged to keep warm and check in on family and friends who may be more vulnerable to the effects of cold weather.

The UK Health Security Agency fears the plummeting temperatures could have a "serious impact" on people's health - especially older people and those with pre-existing health conditions.

For people struggling to afford heating bills, Simple Energy Advice provides free advice on energy efficiency and national grants that are available.