British drivers would benefit from learning more about how airbags work.

A road safety campaign group, GEM Motoring Assist, is concerned that motorists who do not know anything about airbags could be unnecessarily frightened by their deployment.

"The airbag is a great safety feature and used in conjunction with a seat belt can often save serious injury," said GEM chief executive David Williams.

"But unless they have direct experience of these quick inflating devices drivers and passengers could panic and experience extra stress after being involved in a bump."

It can be quite startling when an airbag goes off, although many drivers do not even know what has happened until it begins to deflate.

However, the explosion required to inflate it can cause some smoke to be emitted.

Some accident victims have mistakenly thought their vehicle was on fire as a result.