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Government plans to close loophole in legislation
30 October 2020
Roads Minister Baroness Vere has announced government plans to close the loophole in legislation surrounding the use of a mobile phone whilst driving.
The Department for Transport released this news on the government website on October 17 2020.
The rules around using a mobile phone whilst driving are notoriously unclear. The BBC reported that a recent survey by the RAC revealed almost one in 10 drivers aged 17-24 say they play games on their phones while driving.
As it stands, the law says that you can’t call or text whilst driving, but it has become clear that this legislation is not specific enough.
Ronnie Simpson, a lawyer specialising in road, traffic and dangerous driving said, "The general rule is that you cannot hold your mobile in your hand and use it whilst driving, so hands-free tends to be ok, but texting is not. If you're not looking at the camera and not engaging - and you're engaging with the road - I suppose there's no difference in making a telephone call."
The new plans would see drivers caught taking photos, playing games or scrolling through a playlist behind the wheel to be clearly breaking the law on mobile phone use.
Although, contactless payments at drive-thru windows, whilst the vehicle is stationary, would be exempt.
Roads Minister Baroness Vere said, “Our roads are some of the safest in the world, but we want to make sure they’re safer still by bringing the law into the 21st century.
“That’s why we’re looking to strengthen the law to make using a hand-held phone while driving illegal in a wider range of circumstances – it’s distracting and dangerous and for too long risky drivers have been able to escape punishment but this update will mean those doing the wrong thing will face the full force of the law.”
At Marshall Leasing, road safety is a top priority. To find out more about how we keep our drivers safe, please get in touch on 01480 414541 or email info@marshall-leasing.co.uk. Alternatively, please fill out our contact form.
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