Recently published data indicates that UK drivers have not been discouraged from using their phone while behind the wheel, despite the introduction of tougher punishments for the crime.
Since March 1st, the penalty points and fine given to drivers caught using their phone while driving has been set at six points and £200 respectively, which is double what the punishment was prior that date.
With these tougher punishments in place, newly qualified drivers - who have a ceiling of six points during their first two years of drivers - could lose their licence immediately if they are caught using a mobile while driving.
Nearly 6,000 drivers caught in just four weeks
However, a recent Freedom of Information request by the Press Association indicates that quite a few drivers are undeterred by the tougher punishments. In the four weeks after March 1st this year, 5,977 drivers were caught using their phone while driving.
That means that on average 200 people were caught by UK police using their phone while driving every day. More than a third of the drivers caught using their phone during this recorded time period were in London, which was the area which had the most offenders.
Some of the incidents reported during this time period included one in which the driver of a 7.5-tonne lorry was seen on his phone while negotiating a roundabout. Also, a school minibus driver was seen on his mobile while driving with ten children onboard.
Also caught using their phone while driving was a journalist, who funnily enough was reporting on the tougher penalties for using your mobile behind the wheel at the time of being caught.
While quite a lot of motorists were caught using their phone in the first few weeks following tougher laws, the number of incidents recorded could be higher than average. That’s because many police forces around the UK started a week-long crackdown on mobile phone use immediately following the enforcement of tougher punishments.
