Mobile Phone Penalty Rises

In 2005, 13 deaths and 400 injuries were blamed on drivers using hand-held mobile phones. The Department for Transport has also stated that 21% of drivers admit breaking the law since the legislation was introduced in December 2003. According to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RSPoA), using mobile phones whilst driving is a distraction that makes drivers four times more likely to crash.

From the 27th February 2007 Section 26 of the Road Safety Act 2006 increased the fixed penalty for drivers using a hand held phone or similar device. Motorists face tough new penalties for breaking the law by using a hand-held mobile phone whilst driving. Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander announced for the first time, that the award will include three penalty points, as well as doubling the fine from £30 to £60.
 
Should the police or the driver choose to take a case to court rather than use a fixed-penalty notice, the maximum fine rises to £1,000, rising to £2,500 for drivers of vans, lorries, buses and coaches. Employers have a legal duty under Health and Safety law, to ensure the safety of their employees and of anyone else that may be affected by their activities. This duty also applies when employees are driving for work purposes in private or company vehicles (including travelling to meetings or client’s premises and/or delivery rounds). Therefore employers should take all reasonable steps to ensure their employees are exercising good practice and are compliant with the law when using mobile phones whilst driving.

In support of our clients, mhl issue safe working practice & procedure guideline sheets to issue to client employees. However, we have amended these guidelines. For all clients who are not due a client visit within the next 10 days these safety guidelines can be downloaded from mhl’s website. We strongly recommend that the new mobile phone safety guidelines are issued to all applicable employees.