Novice drivers in the UK to lose licence if caught using phone.

floatwinner

Great idea, will make people really think twice. Would love to see it made law here.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39118523

tossy

Why limit it to new drivers?

The amount of people i see driving on phones (even in cars i know have Bluetooth) is mad.

Dravokivich

I don't think its a good idea to hit newer drivers harder than older drivers. Surely you should have higher expectations of people who've been driving longer?

Cee-Jay-Cee

Dravokivich wrote: »

I don't think its a good idea to hit newer drivers harder than older drivers. Surely you should have higher expectations of people who've been driving longer?

I agree, everyone should be subject to the same law but in effect more younger drivers would be effected as they are the ones most likely to be using their phones while driving.

alchemist33

It's not limited to newer drivers. Those caught will get six penalty points now, but new drivers (I think) need fewer points to lose their licence, so they'll be hit harder.

Alanstrainor

7 points means disqualification for N plate drivers I thought.

Cortina_MK_IV

Agreed it should be any driver. Use your phone, lose your licence... End of.

dr.fuzzenstein

Cee-Jay-Cee wrote: »

I agree, everyone should be subject to the same law but in effect more younger drivers would be effected as they are the ones most likely to be using their phones while driving.

Are they though?

BeardySi

Alanstrainor wrote: »

7 points means disqualification for N plate drivers I thought.

It's 6+

Cortina_MK_IV

Caught on rear dashcam texting.

Comhrá

So when is Shane Ross going to do something about our defective unenforceable law concerning texting while driving? Seems the Gardai can't enforce the current shambolic legislation because it's defective.

http://www.leinsterleader.ie/news/home/235458/man-texting-on-phone-traveling-157km-per-hour-on-kildare-motorway.html

r3nu4l

tippman1 wrote: »

So when is Shane Ross going to do something about our defective unenforceable law concerning texting while driving? Seems the Gardai can't enforce the current shambolic legislation because it's defective.

http://www.leinsterleader.ie/news/home/235458/man-texting-on-phone-traveling-157km-per-hour-on-kildare-motorway.html

Off topic: 100km zone on the M7 near Naas? Where is that?

Atlantic Dawn

Best solution might be for phone to be seized too, lots of the handsets would be worth over a weeks wages. Not many people could be buying 3 or 4 phones a year.

Leonard Hofstadter

£200 and six points as of today. Quite a dart and it will hopefully make people think twice about doing it. Haven't seen anyone do it in the UK, but see it all the time in Ireland. Of course that doesn't matter, because everyone knows that you can do whatever you like on Irish roads so long as you don't exceed the speed limit by 0.1 km/h, sure everyone knows that 'speed kills' and you are automatically worse than the grim reaper for exceeding an arbitrarily chosen number:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:.

4068ac1elhodqr

They should offer cash bonus to (passengers) in other vehicles with suitable cameras (GPS & timestamps) taking enough evidence based photos. (phone in-use by driver and numberplate) - leading to fines/convictions. The issue would be solved in 2weeks flat, and sales of cameras would skyrocket.

carzony

As long as other crime categories like drug dealing, theft ect. are targeted in a similar manner than i'm happy. Motorists in Ireland anyway, are targeted too often imo.

Samuel T. Cogley

I love the fact that it's perfectly reasonable to suggest losing a license but suggest the phone is modified or confiscated you're being OTT.

It's annoying and dangerous but then so are a lot of things that only attract points.

pa990

'My mum's going to kill me!' Driver, 19, becomes the first to lose his licence for using a gadget at the wheel since penalties doubled this morning

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4271246/Drivers-caught-using-mobile-phones-wheel-again.html

I love Sean nos

carzony wrote: »

Motorists in Ireland anyway, are targeted too often imo.

Any evidence of that?

redcup342

Marina Lazy Beaver wrote: »

They should offer cash bonus to (passengers) in other vehicles with suitable cameras (GPS & timestamps) taking enough evidence based photos. (phone in-use by driver and numberplate) - leading to fines/convictions. The issue would be solved in 2weeks flat, and sales of cameras would skyrocket.

Ugh ... yeah.... everyone on the road watching everyone else for phone usage .... that would be safe.

Drivers should focus on driving, leave policing to the police.

Dr_Bill

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQfyTw91uSs

 Can see why people would want to drive while using their mobile phone.

redcup342

I can't see why anyone would:

Eat a Chinese takeaway while steering with their legs
Do their makeup in the overhead mirror
Read a newspaper
Go messing with their Sat Nav while driving
Watch a TV Show

I've seen all of the above things ...... imo it's not just phones are the issue.

Samuel T. Cogley

I love Sean nos wrote: »

Any evidence of that?

If you mean enforcement no of course not but that's the problem. We can't increase enforcement so we play with laws. It's done to make it look like the legislature and doing something. Motorists, landlords and anything to do with sex are always top of the pile on busy work.

I love Sean nos

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

Motorists, landlords and anything to do with sex are always top of the pile on busy work.

Leaving the obvious enforcement issue aside for a moment, are they any laws affecting motorists that are not considered worthwhile?

Samuel T. Cogley

I love Sean nos wrote: »

Leaving the obvious enforcement issue aside for a moment, are they any laws affecting motorists that are not considered worthwhile?

That's a very different question and one that will varying opinions.

Mobile phone use bugs the hell out of me, not only for the accidents it causes but they way it changes the way people drive, but I'd rather see changes to careless and dangerous driving first than poorly thought out laws round the loss of licenses over it.

4068ac1elhodqr

redcup342 wrote: »

Ugh ... yeah.... everyone on the road watching everyone else for phone usage .... that would be safe.

Drivers should focus on driving, leave policing to the police.

If you had read it properly, would note that it said 'passengers' in other vehicles. These 'non-driving (obviously) passengers' could make some great amounts of cash (paid for by the offenders), whilst making the roads safer for everyone.

They'd also be doing the work that others should really be doing via a couple of 'stealthy' photos. How hard is it to set your phone to blue-tooth, or turn it off, before operating 2tonnes of plastic and metal at up to 120km p/hr.

redcup342

Marina Lazy Beaver wrote: »

If you had read it properly, would note that it said 'passengers' in other vehicles. These 'non-driving (obviously) passengers' could make some great amounts of cash (paid for by the offenders), whilst making the roads safer for everyone.

They'd also be doing the work that others should really be doing via a couple of 'stealthy' photos. How hard is it to set your phone to blue-tooth, or turn it off, before operating 2tonnes of plastic and metal at up to 120km p/hr.

I did read it properly, if there's money involved then of course you'll have people trying to make money while driving too.

I love Sean nos

• Most people had between 12 and 18 points, but 203 people accumulated more
• Greater London topped the table at 1,385 people over the 12 points, while the Shetland Islands had one person
• West Yorkshire was among the top 10 counties for numbers of offenders, as was Essex, where one driver had 42 points, and another had 36
• Oxfordshire, Surrey and Norfolk were average in terms of the number of offending drivers but had motorists clocking up 51 points, 30 and 39 respectively

One chap from West Yorkshire has 62 points and is still driving.
So the police are enforcing the law. It's the courts that are the let down.