A blanket of snow swept across the North-East this morning, causing misery for motorists.

Drivers faced difficult conditions after snow fell overnight and yesterday’s rain turned to ice as temperatures dropped to as low as minus 4C in places.

In Scotland, emergency services urged motorists to take care as heavy snow hit northern areas, and there was black ice on roads across the country.

Forecaster Victoria Kettney, from MeteoGroup, said the weather was expected to get much worse in the next 48 hours.

‘‘Overnight Wednesday a warm front of air from the west will hit a colder front, causing snow,’’ she said.

‘‘The worst hit areas will be the east of the UK, with heavy snow expected in Scotland and the North of England.

‘‘Up to 4in (10cm) of snow is predicted on high ground in Scotland, while around 1.5in (4cm) could fall on high areas in the North of England.

‘‘The snowfall will continue into Thursday and will be followed by rain.’’ Meanwhile, Ladbrokes has cut the chance of a white Christmas in London to 11/4 from 3/1 following another run of money.

The bookmaker was originally offering 7/1 for snow on December 25 in the capital.

But plummeting temperatures have forced Ladbrokes to slash the odds and a white Christmas could cost bookies up to £1 million.

Spokesman Nick Weinberg said: ‘‘We’re frozen with fear at the prospect of a white Christmas.

‘‘Interest in the traditional festive wager has gone into overdrive this year.’’