A quarter (25%) of drivers said congestion was the thing they worried about most when they had to drive for more then 200 miles.

Having an accident was the second most common worry on long journeys with nearly one in five (17%) drivers worrying about this the most.

Young drivers are more worried about breaking down on a long journey than having an accident. One in five (20%) of drivers aged 18 – 24 said breaking down was their biggest concern on a long journey, compared to 13 per cent of all drivers.

Young drivers were also the most concerned about getting lost with more than one in ten (13%) worrying about this most on a long journey. They were more than three times as likely as drivers aged over 65 (4%) to say this.

Top long journey stresses differ across the country as well as across age groups. Drivers in Eastern England are more than twice as likely as drivers in Northern Ireland to worry about congestion (28% compared to 12%). Bad weather is more of a concern for drivers in Scotland than anywhere else in the UK with one in ten (10%) concerned about it.

The results from the AA/Populus poll of 23,085 drivers come as the AA launches a special offer for drivers to get 15 months’ breakdown cover for the price of 12.

AA President Edmund King, said: ‘The best way to avoid any of these things blighting your journey is to plan well in advance, allow yourself plenty of time, listen to local traffic news and make sure your car is well-maintained before a long journey.

‘If the worst does happen having breakdown cover will give some peace of mind that you won’t be facing a hefty call-out charge on top of the inconvenience already caused.’

As part of its Summer Saviours campaign, the AA will also be running five specially designed flower power AA hippy vans, which are out on the roads with breakdown patrols.

Anyone who spots one of the vans out and about and tweets @TheAA_UK using #AAhippyvan with the location and time they saw the van will be entered into a draw to win a £50 Amazon voucher. People can also enter by re-tweeting #AAhippyvan tweets sent from @TheAA_UK and @AAPresident.

A separate competition will give new members signing up or existing AA Members registered with AA Rewards, a chance to win one of three VW California campervans.