Be a friend and ask your mates to stop using their mobile phone at the wheel

Police are recruiting the public to encourage their friends not to use their mobile phone at the wheel to potentially save their life and yours.

A police campaign begins today (Monday 20 February 2023) enforcing stricter rules on mobile phone use whilst driving.

In March 2022, new laws around using handheld mobile phones at the wheel came into force. It is now illegal to use a handheld mobile phone whilst driving for virtually any use, including looking through playlists, taking photos or playing games. A device can be used handsfree if secured in a cradle, allowing sat nav use.

If you break the law, you can get a £200 fine and six points on your licence. If you are taken to court you could face a £1,000 fine (£2,500 if you’re driving a lorry or bus) and a ban from driving. 

Officers will be carrying out more checks in Hertfordshire enforcing punishments if necessary. The campaign runs until 10 March 2023.

Sergeant Russell Jones from the Road Policing Unit covering Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire said: “Some people do not realise the impact that using a mobile phone whilst driving can have on their reaction times. No message, call or Instagram post is worth your life or that of someone else.

“If you see your friend is texting whilst driving, ask them to stop. Or if you call them and they’re in the car, say you’ll call them back.

“Many of my colleagues have had to knock on the door of families to tell them that their loved one is not coming home because they or someone else on the road were distracted by their mobile phone whilst driving. We do not want to be telling your family that news”.