The weight of the ice can sometimes be heavy enough to bring down trees and power lines, and the glaze of ice on the ground effectively turns roads and pathways into an ice rink, according to the Met Office.
The Met Office has warned of snow and ice, with the risk of rare freezing rain, across most of England and Wales over the weekend.
Freezing rain could lead to treacherous conditions across the UK over the weekend, the Met Office warned.
It starts as snow, ice, sleet or hail high up in the atmosphere, but as it travels down it melts through a layer of warmer air, then refreezes again through a layer of colder air near the surface.
It can produce striking effects, as the rain drop spreads out momentarily across the surface before it freezes, encasing the surface in a layer of clear ice.
