According to new statistics compiled by traffic specialists Accident Exchange, the number of overseas trucks 'at fault' in collisions has gone up by 10 per cent in the 12 months to the end of February.

The accident investigators looked at records of road accidents across the UK over the period to find those where a foreign lorry was deemed to be at fault.

Overall, lorries registered abroad are involved in around 9,000 accidents which is one out of every 378 across the UK.

But the proportions are dramatically higher on some roads. In particular, almost half of all accidents on the M25 are caused by foreign lorries, representing 25 per cent of all UK accidents involving the overseas trucks.

In many cases victims end up with nothing because the foreign lorry drivers leave false details, drive off without stopping or the owners cannot be traced in their home country by investigators.

In some cases they do not even have valid insurance in the first place.

The biggest culprits are truckers from Poland, according to Department of Transport statistics last updated at the end of 2007, followed by those from the Czech Republic, Lithuania and Hungary.

Department of Transport officials have tried to get around the problem by handing out special magnifying mirrors known as Fresnel lenses to 200,000 foreign lorry drivers over the past year.

The mirrors increase visibility out of the right-hand side of the HGV as it moves into the centre lane of a motorway or the outside of a dual carriageway.

Accident Exchange said handing out Fresnel lenses had some effect at first with a slight decrease in sideswiping cases for three months after the government campaign last year.

But the number of incidences crept up again after that. High fuel costs last year may have contributed because it led to a fall in traffic numbers on main trunk roads and motorways.

Clearer roads mean faster average speeds which generally leads to more collisions, according to road safety campaigners.

'The police now have the power to issue on-the-spot fines of up to £900 but it may not be enough for some victims,' said Accident Exchange managing director Michael Killoury.

He added: 'Non-existing policies, difficulty contacting foreign insurance companies, drivers pulling off without leaving details are all reasons cited for why motorists are likely to be unsuccessful in recovering damages from foreign-registered HGVs.'

While it is easy to blame the foreign truckers for being blindsided, some feel British motorists should also be more careful when going past left-hand drive giants of the road.

Peter Cullum, head of international affairs at the Road Hauliers Association said: 'In the last year we have seen escalating fuel prices reduce traffic densities on our major trunk roads.

'As a result it's highly possible that increasing motorway speeds are leading to a rise in side-swiping incidents caused by undertaking or overtaking drivers who don't understand the blind-spot hazard of left-hand-drive HGVs.'