Top Cop Says Drivers Should Get 6 Penalty Points for Using Handheld Mobile
Bernard Hogan-Howe who is the present Metropolitan Commissioner of Police has spoken out against the current £60 fine and 3 penalty points for using a mobile phone whilst driving, saying its not a harsh enough penalty.
The Commissioner has suggested that 6 penalty points would appropriate and get drivers to take the offence more seriously. Evidence suggests that this is indeed the case, because logically, you might think that were you going to commit an offence, you would do it a little discreetly, yet 171,000 people were issued fixed penalty notices for using a handheld mobile whilst driving and chances are, that’s just the tip of the iceberg, because just think of how many did it and didn’t get caught!
Amazingly, the figures already make this the fifth most common traffic crime.
Legally, drivers can use a mobile phone whilst driving, but they must not touch it, so effectively this means they can use it through a hands free-kit or their in-car system but even then, should a police officer feel that you are not in control of you’re vehicle, you can still be issued with an on the spot £60 fine and 3 penalty points.
The BVL view on this is that there isn’t any excuse at all for using a handheld mobile phone whilst you are driving. Many cars have inbuilt hands free systems now and even if yours does not, a simple hands free kit can be purchased for just a few pounds (certainly less than your precious phone would have cost you) and even many budget priced satellite navigation systems from makers such as Garmin or TomTom have inbuilt hands free phone systems.
Of course, if you’ve got neither of these, you can pull over and stop to make your call, or simply not use the phone for the time you are in the car. So for us, you cant argue this one out, its illegal and its proven to be dangerous and if you are caught not only should you get the proposed harsher penalty, but maybe a months driving ban also, allowing you plenty of time to make all those important phone calls.
