A motorist suffered multiple fractures and his partner suffered a head wound when they were attacked by yobs who threw snowballs at their car, police said yesterday.

Warwickshire Police believe up to 20 youths aged between ten and 17 were involved in the incident in a residential area in Leamington Spa on Monday.

The 47-year-old driver, who tried to protect himself with a snooker cue, suffered fractures to his cheek, thigh and shin bones, after being set upon in Winston Crescent at about 6.50pm.

A police spokesman said: "The victims left their home address in Winston Crescent in their car and drove along Newland Road to the junction with Mason Avenue, where it is believed they were subjected to snowballs being thrown at their car that may have contained stones.

"The male driver reversed his car back towards his home address in Winston Crescent, leaving his partner in the car and came back out of the house with what is believed to be a snooker cue and remonstrated with the youths.

"A number of youths then assaulted the man, snapping the cue in half, and continued to assault him whilst he tried to retreat to his home address for safety.

"His partner, aged 43, opened the car door to ask them to stop and was also assaulted, causing an injury to her head."

The couple were inside their house by the time police arrived and there was no sign of the youths in the area.

Police are waiting to interview the couple and are appealing for any witnesses to come forward.

Meanwhile, motorists have been advised to take precautions when travelling in harsh winter weather after heavy snow caused chaos in parts of England.

Up to 400 drivers abandoned their vehicles in freezing temperatures across Gloucestershire on Monday night, with accidents and treacherous conditions making roads impassable.

A pregnant woman had to be taken to hospital through the snowstorm in a four-wheel drive ambulance. The expectant mother was taken to Stroud Maternity Hospital and gave birth to a boy shortly after arriving.

The St John Ambulance four-wheel drive was able to negotiate roads too treacherous for other vehicles.

The RAC advised people to check the weather forecast and use major routes where possible as these were more likely to have been gritted.

The motoring organisation also urged drivers to be more cautious on the roads.

An RAC spokesman said: "In the snow and ice, RAC patrols attend to a third more than the usual number of vehicles needing to be recovered following an accident.

"Too many motorists drive too fast and too close to the vehicle in front for the road and weather conditions. Add to this the dense patchy fog that can occur and collisions are inevitable."

Almost two inches of snow fell in Gloucestershire on Monday night, and forecasters predicted another difficult drive home for motorists across parts of Britain yesterday.

Stephen Davenport, from the PA WeatherCentre, said: "Before milder air arrives it will be preceded by more snow or freezing rain across parts of Wales, northern England and Scotland.

"The main problem will be rain falling on frozen roads, with snow on higher ground."

A spokesman for the Highways Agency said: "Gritters are treating England's motorways and other strategic roads where ice or snow is forecast.

"Maintenance teams are gritting in advance of the cold weather, and will continue to treat motorways and other strategic roads throughout the cold snap.

"The Highways Agency is advising drivers to check for up-to-date information."