Drivers Using Mobile Phones Punished Less?

The number of drivers who were given penalty points for using mobile phones while driving fell by 24% in 2014.

16:15 17 April 2015

Based on latest figures, many police forces have offered several first-time offenders the chance to attend a road safety course instead of giving them penalty points for using mobile phones while driving. For this reason, the number of drivers who received the punishment set by law for the offence has declined by 24per cent in 2014. 

 

In 2014, more than 99,000 people attended the What’s Driving Us? Course. The number represents a 53per cent increase compared to previous year. The course is provided to drivers who are caught breaking the law including using mobile phones while driving. 

A spokesman for road safety charity Brake said FPN figures could indicate a "decline in policing resources".

"We need traffic policing to be made a national priority, so police have the resources to catch and penalise risky multi-tasking drivers, as well as much higher fines to truly deter phone use by drivers," he said.

 

Paul Newman, whose sister Ellen died after being hit by a driver using his mobile, said that the new scheme sends a “dangerous message.”