KNOW YOUR RIGHTS RECENT MAJOR CHANGES IN LAW
2022 has seen a couple of major changes in traffic law. Earlier this year, the law for driving whilst using a mobile phone was amended so that ALL USE whilst driving was banned (rather than just making calls or sending texts) and just a couple of months ago, new laws were introduced to create an offence of causing serious injury by careless driving. And with the new laws, it seems that new technologies are on the horizon to detect them.
At Patterson Law we keep fully up to date with each and every change. If you need any advice on motoring matters, email:
advice@pattersonlaw.co.uk or for regular updates on road traffic law follow us on
facebook.com/PattersonLawMotoringSolicitors or
twitter.com/Patterson_law_ We regularly share tips and tricks to stay safe and to keep your licence clean of penalty points.
MOBILE PHONE CAMERAS
Devon and Cornwall police is currently trialling new cameras which can detect drivers using a phone and driving without a seatbelt.
The new cameras are similar to speed cameras. The system is housed in a van which is parked at the side of a road and contains multiple cameras. The system then uses technology to automatically detect not only speed, but also when drivers are using a phone or not wearing a seatbelt.
The images are then sent directly to a police department and reviewed by a human. If it is clear that an offence has been committed, the driver will then be sent a Notice of Intended Prosecution and fixed penalty offers carrying penalty points and fines.
Driving whilst using a handheld mobile phone carries a six point and £200 fixed penalty, and driving without a seatbelt a £100 fine but no points. The fines will increase if the fixed penalty offer is not accepted and the case proceeds to court.
It is likely that if multiple offences are committed (if somebody is seen speeding as well as using their phone) it will even bypass the fixed penalty stage and the case will proceed straight to a Court Summons. That could even put you at risk of disqualification.
80
If the trials are successful, it is likely the UK government will adopt the cameras permanently.
So it is important to remind professional drivers never to hold a phone whilst driving. Now that any use of a phone is banned, it is more important than ever to remember to keep a phone, or any device capable of performing a communication function (even a PDA) in a cradle at all times.
An offence of driving whilst using a mobile telephone can only be committed if the phone is held in the hand, so keeping it in your cradle should keep you as safe as possible.
Even then, using a phone whilst in a cradle does not automatically mean you’re safe. If using the phone in a cradle causes a drop in the standard of driving then you could be prosecuted for driving without due care and attention, or if your attention is focused on the phone and not on the road you could be accused of not being in proper control of your vehicle. Both of which carry penalty points.
These new cameras are just the latest in technologies that have been rolled out over the last few months. Initially we saw red light cameras that can also detect speed - historically cameras positioned at traffic lights would only normally record whether a driver has contravened a red light – and more recently we saw new average speed cameras which record not only a vehicle’s average speed between two cameras, but also the exact speed as it passes each camera individually.
So again it is more important than ever to watch your speed and ensure you are travelling within the limit.
NOVEMBER 2022 PHTM
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88
