The Cancer Research UK along with high street chain Superdrug conducted a survey including 2,000 adults which showed that 46 percent Britons were sun-burnt at least once this season.

The survey also discovered that out of those who were burnt, 32 percent said that they were trying to get a tan and almost half of these people would risk burning themselves again for the sake of their tan.

“While it’s important to enjoy the sun safely to get enough vitamin D, there are risks involved in long exposures. And these results indicate that people aren't taking these risks seriously enough,” said Ed Yong, of Cancer Research UK.

The participants of the survey were most commonly burnt on their face and 40 people admit that they were left red-faced after spending too many hours in the sun. This was followed by 39 people on the arms and 37 percent on the shoulders.

As many as 10,300 cases of malignant melanoma are diagnosed in the UK each year and almost 2,000 people die from it.