Posted: 14th February 2008, 09:02 am

The penalty for illegally using a mobile when driving has been increased to three penalty points and a £60 fine.

A new THINK! campaign to highlight the dangers of using a mobile phone when driving was launched recently by Road Safety Minister Jim Fitzpatrick. The £1.5m campaign is timed to coincide with the first anniversary of the introduction of tougher penalties for using a mobile phone when driving.

The penalty for illegally using a mobile when driving has been increased to three penalty points and a £60 fine. Latest research shows the message is getting through to drivers but some people are still needlessly risking their own lives and putting others in danger for the sake of a phone call. All drivers are urged to switch off or go to voicemail before they drive off.

The same changes were made to the penalties for not having proper control of a vehicle - a measure which can be used where a driver has been distracted by using a hands-free mobile phones. If the police or the driver chooses to take a case to court rather than use a fixed penalty notice, the penalty is three points, discretionary disqualification and a maximum fine of £1,000 (£2,500 for drivers of vans, lorries, buses and coaches).

Recent research showed a 40% reduction in the number of car drivers seen using hand-held mobiles at the wheel between September 2006 and August 2007. Just 1% of car drivers were observed using a hand-held mobile while driving, compared with 1.7% in 2006.

www.dft.gov.uk

Source: www.vannews.co.uk