Japanese car maker, Honda has written to all Civic drivers in Britain to notify them of problems with faulty handbrakes, which has led to dozens of cars rolling away from where they were parked.

The Japanese firm said it was sending out letters to 63,000 drivers of the Swindon-produced car to urge them to have their cars checked after the manufacturer received several customer complaints that the handbrake did not stick if applied when pushing the release button.

Another reports that the car company Honda has recalled 79,000 vehicles because of handbrake problems

Honda has offered to give customers a new handbrake if they are unhappy.

A Honda spokesman said: "We do apologise for any inconvenience to customers.

"We will be sending out letters to our customers in March and April recommending that they visit their local Honda dealer to get an improved handbrake fitted." he added

The design flaw applies to Civics that were built between 2006 and 2007.

Honda recommends that owners do not push the release button when using the handbrake, which may result in it not catching.

The flaw has been the subject of conversation on Internet motoring discussion boards since 2007.

The Civic is the biggest-selling model for Honda. Each year it makes almost 100,000 cars.

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