Mobile phones
There are three main offences relating to use of a mobile phone
whilst driving and they are as follows:
Use by the driver;
causing or permitting the use by the driver; and supervising a
provision licence holder whilst using.
The offences can usually be dealt with by way of a fixed penalty
of 3 points and a fine of £60 but if the matter were to proceed to
Court, the fine would be means tested and limited to £1,000 or as
much as £2,500 for drivers of HGVs, coaches or buses.
Do you need legal advice?
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The first offence is the most common one and is committed by a
person who drives a motor vehicle on a road whilst using a handheld
mobile telephone or other specified handheld device. A device is
deemed to be "handheld" if it must be held at some point during the
course of making or receiving a call or of performing any other
interactive function. This includes making or receiving calls,
sending or receiving messages and using the internet.
You may have a defence if the call was to an emergency service
(999) in response to a genuine emergency and it was not safe or
practical to stop driving in order to make the call.
It may be that the police decide to pursue a different or more
serious allegation dependant on the quality of driving that arises
whilst driving using a mobile phone, such as not being in proper
control of the vehicle or driving without due care and attention.
These allegations may also apply when using a hands-free mobile, so
be aware, nobody is immune from a prosecution if your driving is
adversely effected even by using a hands-free system.
Please call us for full clarification concerning the laws relating
to use of mobile phones while driving.
Contact us now using our
online contact form below to discuss your specific
circumstances.