Mobile Phone Use When Driving

[michaelf]

As has been covered in the news and posted across social media by several police forces, as of March 1st 2017 the penalties for using a phone while driving will increase to six points and a £200 fine as explained in the article from my local force below. When reading the article, one particular phrase caught my attention:

 

It is illegal to use a mobile phone, held in the hand, whilst driving or while stopped with the engine on.

 

From: Six points and £200 - tough new penalty for mobile use behind the wheel | Northamptonshire Police

 

Now, I know that use of a hands free kit is legal, but this made me wonder about the use of mobiles in mounts/holders/cradles. I (and I'm sure this is the case for many of you) no longer own a sat nav and instead rely on my phone, in a holder attached a vent, running Google Maps. My interpretation would be that this doesn't break the law, as the phone is not held in the hand.

 

I've located the relevant legislation, Amendment 110 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 which states that:

 

a mobile telephone or other device is to be treated as hand-held if it is, or must be, held at some point during the course of making or receiving a call or performing any other interactive communication function;

 

From: The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) (Amendment) (No. 4) Regulations 2003

 

This seems to support my interpretation that the law only prohibits the use of these devices when they are held in the hand, and not those mounted in a cradle or holder.

 

Would you agree with this assessment? Where would I stand if I were to touch the phone, maybe to mute/unmute voice guidance, or accept a new route suggestion? Or to skip to the next track on a music app? On the surface this seems no different to using a traditional sat nav, or even tuning the stereo but I'm struggling to find anything official to support my conclusions.

 

As an aside I also wonder where the line would be drawn? What if I used Google Now via hands free to add a waypoint or program a destination? What if I used Google Now via hands free to send a text message? To take it to the nth degree, what if I typed a text message on the phone while in the holder? Do these activities fall back to "Driving without due care and attention" or is there some specific legislation I'm missing.

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

P.S. I'm not looking to start a debate about whether the increased penalties are right or wrong, or on the safety of phone use in cars while driving, just hopefully something to ease my worry about using my phone as a sat nav.

[3s-gtech]

That's a very fine point which I think is going to rely on officers' own discretion - which my gut feeling suggests in most cases will be 'here's your FPN'. I have a fixed cradle for this - the phone inside is no longer a phone insofar as it no longer has a SIM card and is dedicated to the job. They're on thin ice here, as the next step will be banning anything you need to handle which isn't driving related. With all of the tech currently being thrown into drivers' vision, the line will have to be drawn somewhere.

 

There's always Driving Without Due Care and Attention which is a catch all too - tuning the radio, using sat nav or any modern integrated system could get you busted.

[LincolnE]

Yeah, it depends on circumstances I'd say...

 

Clicking once to accept a new route parked up at traffic lights is going to be fine, playing flappy birds on the motorway will be a different matter.

[michaelf]

Clicking once to accept a new route parked up at traffic lights is going to be fine, playing flappy birds on the motorway will be a different matter.

 

This is pretty much the same conclusion I'd drawn - common sense says that in these scenarios it's no different to using a sat nav or stereo, but that like anything in the car you shouldn't become distracted as a result of it.

[witch]

I have recently done a driver awareness course (whoops) and the trainers stated that you MUST NOT TOUCH your mobile phone whilst you are driving, OR IF THE ENGINE IS ON - even if it is just to hit a button.

Hands-free is OK but that is all.

 

You WILL get done if you are seen to touch your phone. Doesnt matter if you are stopped in traffic. Or even parked if the engine is still on.

You shouldn't even touch the phone to turn it if you are using it as a satnav on the seat next to you.

[kennysarmy]

I have recently done a driver awareness course (whoops) and the trainers stated that you MUST NOT TOUCH your mobile phone whilst you are driving, OR IF THE ENGINE IS ON - even if it is just to hit a button.

Hands-free is OK but that is all.

 

You WILL get done if you are seen to touch your phone. Doesnt matter if you are stopped in traffic. Or even parked if the engine is still on.

You shouldn't even touch the phone to turn it if you are using it as a satnav on the seat next to you.

 

What about at lights when the auto-stop system cuts in?

[CAM]

What about at lights when the auto-stop system cuts in?

 

The law explicitly forbids usage when waiting in traffic.

[synaesthesia]

A common sense approach should be used. The law may be explicit in some things but if you're sat in the car in the morning waiting for it to defrost with your engine running, a police officer would have every right under the law to reprimand you for playing Candy Crush or texting your boss to say you'll be 5 minutes late, but the officer would have to be a complete git to do so.

[kennysarmy]

The law explicitly forbids usage when waiting in traffic.

 

But whilst sat with the auto-stop engaged at a set of lights which sit on red for three minutes - could I get my newspaper out and read a bit?

[LincolnE]

But whilst sat with the auto-stop engaged at a set of lights which sit on red for three minutes - could I get my newspaper out and read a bit?

 

Technically you're still in control of the vehicle and as such, could get done for Careless Driving/driving without due care. Careless driving - Driving Law motoring legal advice does actually specify newspapers (and to be honest, I'd say rightfully so).

[CAM]

You are supposed to be paying attention to the road around you. If you sit at a traffic light and read a newspaper, you are not paying attention to the traffic signals and road users around you. All it takes is for you to realise "Oh green light", put your foot down and hit the cyclist who was alongside you or pedestrian late over the crossing.

 

You'd be surprised how often I have glanced in my mirror when pulling away and seen someone tapping their phone without a care in the world until the person behind sounds their horn.