A new study suggests that having child passengers in your car is more distracting than using a mobile phone.

The report, which analysed 12 families over a three week period involved rigging up four cameras in the subjects' cars so that each driver's behaviour could be monitored.

The findings arose after analysing the 92 journeys made by the families, in which any behaviour that distracted the driver was noted.

In the vast majority of the trips – 90 – the driver was distracted at some point. During a 16 minute trip each parent would be looking somewhere other than the road for an average of three minutes and 22 seconds.

12 per cent of potentially distracting behaviour was down to children in the rear of the car, while mobile phones (hands free) accounted for just one per cent of distractions.

When it came to the male/female divide, fathers were more likely to be distracted by the kids than mothers – and for longer.

76.4 per cent of distractions related to looking at the children – either in the rear-view mirror or directly. Talking to a child made up 16 per cent, while assisting the child accounted for 7 per cent, and playing games with the child, one per cent.

The team behind the research, based in Monash University Accident Research Centre, in Melbourne, Australia, said the data suggested that having children in the car could be 12 times more distracting than using a mobile phone.

However, the use of a mobile phone is generally regarded as a significant hazard. Road safety campaigners Brake, supported by the Association of Chief Police Officers, recently called for a ban on hands-free sets as well as mobile devices themselves. It also suggested that the fine for texting behind the wheel be raised from the current £100 to between £500 and £1,000.

A distraction of any kind can result in an accident, and the driver and passengers needing medical attention or vehicle recovery. This new report may open up a debate about what constitutes a distraction on the road.