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news
Driver using handheld mobile phone (image licensed CC BY 2.0 by DPP Law on Flickr)Tougher laws on mobile phone use while driving set to take effect
Next Friday 25 March will see the long-awaited introduction of tougher laws on motorists who use their mobile phones while driving.
Since 2003, it has been illegal to use a hand-held mobile phone while driving Regulation 110 of the Road Vehicles (Construction & Use) Regulations 1986.
However, that regulation provides that for the offence to be committed, the driver would have to be using the device for “interactive communication,” as this article published by the House of Commons Library explains.
But with the rise of smartphones over the past 15 years or so, the legislation has quickly become outdated, with mobile devices able to carry out any number of functions, including playback or recording of video, or playing music, with users able to change songs via the app they are using – something that potentially distracts from driving.
The lack of effectiveness of the current law was highlighted in the 2019 case DPP v Barreto where it was found that a motorist filming the aftermath of a road traffic collision while driving was not guilty of an offence, because he was not using the device for interactive communication.
The Statutory Instrument bringing the relevant changes to the law into effect was laid before Parliament on 1 February this year.
Under the new legislation, even putting a mobile phone in ‘flight mode’ while driving will not enable someone using it to claim they were complying with the law, with the government making it clear in the Statutory Instrument that the offence “will cover any device which is capable of interactive communication even if that functionality is not enabled at the time.”
The legislation makes it clear that “using” a mobile phone will now encompass all of the following:
illuminating the screen
checking the time
checking notifications
unlocking the device
making, receiving, or rejecting a telephone or internet based call
sending, receiving or uploading oral or written content
sending, receiving or uploading a photo or video
utilising camera, video, or sound recording
drafting any text
accessing any stored data such as documents, books, audio files, photos, videos, films, playlists, notes or message
accessing an app
accessing the internet.
Using a hand-held mobile phone for in an emergency situation will still be allowed, and the law has also been expanded to enable drivers to use the phone as a contactless payment device, for instance at a drive-thru or tollbooth or car park, provided the vehicle is stationary and the goods or services paid for are supplied at the same time.
Hands-free mobile use, for example for making or receiving voice calls, will also continue to be permitted (drivers can be prosecuted for offences such as driving without due care and attention if they are found to be distracted, of course) as will using the device for satellite navigation purposes, provided it is kept in a cradle.
The minimum penalty for using a hand-held mobile phone at the wheel will continue to be a fine of £200 and six penalty points on the motorist’s driving licence, while new drivers who have held their licence for two years or less would have it revoked.
The need for the law to be tightened up was highlighted by a recent case in which Mike van Erp –known as CyclingMikey on social media – filmed the former Chelsea and England footballer Frank Lampard apparently using a mobile phone at the wheel and holding a coffee cup in his other hand.
The Crown Prosecution Service however dropped a planned prosecution ahead of the scheduled court date citing lack of evidence that an offence had been committed, including presumably that Lampard had been using the device for interactive communication.
Similarly, in March last year we reported how a road.cc reader who had submitted footage to police of a van driver holding a phone could not be referred for prosecution, with Hertfordshire Police saying they were unable to do so because of the Barreto case.
> ‘Look – No hands!’ mobile phone pick-up truck driver can’t be prosecuted, say police (+ video)
“We must be realistic with what we can prove in a court of law and unfortunately in this case we cannot prove beyond reasonable doubt any offences,” the force said.
However, the driver was sent a warning letter, and police “advised them that should future incidents occur this will be taken into account when dealing with them.”
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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33 comments
Personally I'd go with Sir Alec Issigonis' (principal designer of the original Mini) 1950's view that cars shouldn't have radios fitted due to the likely distraction of the driver. Given modern "infotainment" systems (and much, much higher traffic levels) things have only become much worse in that respect.
If you're driving, then drive. Simples.
Even worse in modern cars now, where everything from the radio to the temperature and heated seats are controlled via the touchscreen.
Which is discriminatory - blind people can have difficulty operating a touchscreen.
I think we may have a bigger problem if it's a blind person trying to operate the controls!
Have you seen the standard of some drivers out there?
Well yes, it's why I use a camera in my cars and on my bikes. Your faux outrage was a bit odd though you have to admit.
It was intended to be humorous, so yes you may well think it was odd if you took it at face value.
(I do think that touch screen devices in general are awkward for people with disabilities such as poor sight or shaking hands, but they do have a major advantage of being cheap to use and controlled by software, so moving buttons around costs virtually nothing.)
Old style dash controls can be used without needing to look, which is impossible with touch screen controls; as well, modern vehicles are so sound tight that emergency vehicle sirens are pointless..
Great to see Road CC are showing a picture of one of the biggest culprits of mobile phone use behind the wheel.
The Audi driver. 😂
It is relatively simple to make it so that phones do not work when the vehicle is in motion.
Why does this requirement not get introduced? Because the Govt. who introduces this will be unpopular with motoring lobby and so lose votes.
Politicians/Govts largely introduce laws that serve themselves, no one else.
There's a few reasons.
Phone manufacturers don't want to add an anti-feature so they'd have to be forced to do so and that wouldn't be effective unless it was implemented everywhere (i.e. not much use if you just buy a chinese brand phone that continues working when driving).
Although it's easy to determine when the phone is moving, it's less easy to determine whether you're a driver, a passenger or even just on a train or coach.
How is the phone supposed to respond when you're stationary in traffic (or at lights etc)? If there's some kind of time limit when the phone still doesn't work after stopping, then that will annoy people and could be detrimental after e.g. a crash (though I imagine that emergency calls would always be enabled).
The saner solution is to have penalties for phone use, but ensure that drivers will get caught on a regular basis. This means either lots of cameras or increasing the police presence.
My iPhone already has it, albeit selective (you can choose what type of notifications you want disabled when driving).
If it's user selectable, then it's a feature. If it's mandatory then it's an anti-feature. See DVD player region locking as an example (region-free players sold for higher prices)
Too much risk of preventing a phone being used in an emergency situation.
Easy enough to make 999 an exception, just like it already is for not requiring a SIM card etc. Moreover, in an emergency situation the car is almost invariably stationary. Not many people will be phoning in anticipation.
I really hope this gets enforced (hah! We wish).
There is a signalled junction between the A45 Fletchamstead Highway and A429 Kenilworth road (pictured below) that I ride across every day on my commute. The (bumpy) bike path to Kenilworth is across the signalled crossing. Every morning, almost without fail, I see at least one HGV driver straddling this junction on the A45 waiting to turn right onto the A429, creeping across and over the white line and impeding the pedestrian crossing, checking their phone while they creep across. It is phenomenally dangerous. I never know if, when the green man appears, if they are going to mindlessly proceed onwards, or wait, as they are supposed to. More than once, I've had to shout and bash my fist against the cab door to get their attention to get them to move off the pedestrian crossing.
P.S. Completely unplanned but the irony of there being a massive HGV straddling the crossing in this Google street view image is not lost on me.
Can you explain what is ironic about the picture? Are you saying that it illustrates the point you made in your comment? From what I can see the lorry isn't "straddling" the crossing and either way, is it not possible that it's in motion, in which case it is presumably allowed to move over the crossing as long as it can clear it? You don't know what the cars in front of it are doing or what the HGV driver can see ahead.
I'm picking up on the widely different standards of proof some road cc readers apply depending on whether it's a driver or a cyclist allegedly at fault. There's plenty of bad driving but it doesn't help anybody to look for examples when they aren't there.
There are plenty of studies that show using phones whilst driving is more dangerous than drink driving, the penalties and enforcement should reflect this.
https://www.theaa.com/about-us/newsroom/twice-as-likely-to-crash-text-dr...
Texting or using a phone to surf the internet while driving increases the risk of a crash by 23x, compared with 'just' 4x for being slightly over the limit for alcohol or making a call while driving. Using a phone while waiting at the lights is also no good as research shows it takes several minutes to switch off mentally from the phone task being made.
If it was up to me I'd ban hands-free kits too as the distraction is mental and not physical.
To those who say that having a phone conversation is the same as talking with someone in the car, actually it isn't. Research shows that when a driver is talking with another vehicle occupant the driver will prioritise the driving function over the conversation and will pause talking while dealing with the situation in the road. But when the driver is on the phone, research shows the opposite occurs.
The TRL has done loads of research into this and it's on the TRL website. Feel free to check it out and continue to badger all those drivers you know/see who thik using a phone at the wheel is ok
Absolutely correct; I have my phone switched off when I'm driving, much to the annoyance of my employer..
They are sailing pretty close to the wind there: https://www.harrison-drury.com/automotive-transport-logistics/what-can-e...
Another opportunity missed to prevent serious distraction of drivers, while the government can pretend to be cracking down. They know and all the road safety experts know and knew from the start, that it is the distraction caused by talking to someone on the phone, hand held or not, that is the problem, but continually refuse to do anything about it.
Similarly, the punishment is not effective, and should be at least confiscation of the car for a week for a first offence, a month for the second and a five year driving ban for the third.
Yes Burt, but it's the staring at screens placed at their groins (because they know it's wrong...) and the touching of those screens that really scares the poop out of me.
The change in the law should make easier to prosecute and convict the offence. Hopefully discouraging this extremely dangerous activity.
I have been noticing less diver smartphone usage than I have come to expect, given the recent increase in traffic and queueing.
Ashley Neal has a video of a woman following him.
One of the most interesting things in it is how the woman starts off glancing down at the phone but by the end she is totally immersed. She drives up the kerb at one point and Ashley thought he might get rear-ended.
Seems a surprising trend, given the increasing waterproofing ratings of modern phones.
I don't know how well mobile signals travel through water though I suspect it isn't very far as water is conductive. I've got a wireless pressure sensor that enables a Suunto dive watch to monitor tank air pressure, but that only needs to work over a short distance (from your back to your wrist).
The conversation with someone outside the car is a huge part of the distraction. It's bad enough sometimes conversing with someone inside the car, especially if they are not drivers themselves or if the topic is onerous. I'd like to see phone records pulled in every RTC, at the very least to get some stats on the coincidence with phone calls, if not to use them in the prosecution and sentencing. Distracted driving must be culpable.
Yay!
Now they just need some proper enforcement.
Or indeed any enforcement. We've got much the same law in every state in Australia, you can't *touch* a mobile phone unless its in a fixed holder and for the purpose of navigation (and I think hands free calls). Every day on every ride I see drivers using phones, pull up alongside a stream of cars at traffic lights and at least 50% of drivers will be dicking about with their toys
Great. Now they just need to work on the "hand held" bit, since most of the distraction is due to the attention demanded by the phone, very little is due to the dexterity required to hold it.
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