Stopped for using mobile phone while driving

[DrivingOffence]

Regular mumsnetter name changed for this as I'm very ashamed of myself.

I was driving, queuing in traffic (so not moving), looked at my phone for no good reason, I know this is illegal and irresponsible. I didn't notice there was a police officer on the other side of the road and he obviously pulled me over, took my license details and logged the offence. He asked why I was using my phone and I had to say I had no good reason, I didn't.

Could anyone advise me please what is likely to happen? I have looked it up and it seems that the minimum penalty is 6 points and a £200 fine, so I assume I'll get that. Is there a risk of further prosecution/penalties?

Any advice most welcome and feel free to tell me what an irresponsible idiot I am, I know I am but deserve a kicking tbh.

You're not "in trouble" if the phone is in a cradle, the offence is HOLDING and using.

"It’s illegal to hold and use a phone, sat nav, tablet, or any device that can send or receive data, while driving or riding a motorcycle.
This means you must not use a device in your hand for any reason, whether online or offline."

It's worth taking the time to read through and understand the legislation.

ok so the second it comes off the cradle it’s an offence? I could technically scroll a big computer screen in my car, change music, pull up messages, Sat nav etc and that’s fine? It seems bizarre to me that we would allow that and penalise so heavily for phones. Both should be banned if that’s the case.

How many people have been killed by stationary cars then?

Probably not many, but when you're stationary you need still need to be observing what's around you.
Having been a motorcyclist, (and at risk of sounding like a fun sponge) I try to minimise distractions when driving, no music, no radio, no calls, minimal interaction with passengers.

I also take the time to throughly familiarise myself with all controls / satnav etc. and use voice activation where possible.

And all of that is right

i think there’s a huge difference in risk between using a phone when in stationary traffic (like I did last week when sat for 3 hours due to an accident ahead) and while actually moving.

I understand all the arguments, but the law has not kept up with the tech (screens in cars etx) and isn’t in line with reality (I’d get 6 points for messaging when stuck for 3 hours if my engine was on to keep warm but not if it was off)

laws need to be sensible and proportionate

I haven't received a letter yet but it's early days especially given it's the Christmas/NY period. Bit of an anxious wait.

They are . . .

Oddly an exception to the law is when using your phone to pay at a drive through. So odd that stuck in stationary traffic in a traffic jam isn't but driving through a drive through is.

Isn't using it at a drive through, or to pay the M6 toll, just like waving your card at a till?

Are you in the UK? Any laws are uk wide.

@Bromptotoo No because the offence is to hold and use a phone which is exactly what you're doing when you pay at a drive through.

@CountTo10 the law is here:

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2022/81/regulation/3/made

Pretty much anything with a phone is illegal but there's an exception for making a contactless payment. While making that payment you're presumably stationary. In what rational world is holding the phone to the sensor at the M6 toll plaza any different to holding a debit card?

Seems a reasonable enough thing to me.

I agree, holding and using a phone when stationary is probably not as dangerous as holding and using in moving traffic, but both are illegal regardless of whether your engine is running or not.

For clarity, you can touch and use your phone in traffic or stationary provided it's in a cradle designed for such use.

It seems simple enough to comply with the legislation, just use a cradle, and read the relevant section in the Highway Code.

@Bromptotoo Yes I know what the law is. I'm just expressing an opinion. You seem to ignore the fact that the offence is holding and using a phone which you're doing if you're holding it to use at a toll or drive through. You may be stationary but you are also stationary at traffic lights, in a traffic jam etc etc. so is an interesting anomaly.

Strictly speaking not true, as the law can be different in Scotland and NI, as opposed to England and Wales... anyway. I'm in England. I wasn't asking if the law would be different because I was in a different county; I was asking whether it would be the police in that county or my home county who would take further action. A PP answered, anyway.

Update for anyone who's interested.
I got the letter today (took just over 3 weeks).
No option for a mobile phone awareness course.
£200 and 6 points on licence as per the info I'd found.
Now I need to tell DH And check how much our car insurance will go up by

Ouch ! That was super unlucky x

The use of driver improvement or similar for mobile 'phone use ended some years ago.

When it went up from 3 to 6 points it was recognised that the offence was to serious for that form of disposal. I think the fact that we'd moved from using a phone clamped to your ear to using all the facilities and distractions of a smart phone framed that change.

Yes I gathered it was no longer an option but several people had posted on the thread to mention it so I thought I would confirm that it wasn't.

Yeah, it was and there will be people who did one.

I got sent on one c2014 for a red light offence. Several of my fellow students were mobile phone offenders.

Totally agree with you.

What if you're sat in a queue and looking down at your phone, but at that moment someone chooses to cross the road with their small child or dog, who then stops between your car. You look up, see the adult, but can't see the child/dog, so start to drive...

IMO touch screens in cars are also dangerous. Anything that you have to take your eyes off the road to adjust is a recipe for disaster to me.

My DH's car has CarPlay in it. If I set the sat nav on his touch screen with that, it's perfectly legal, but do it on a phone, even if it's securely mounted, is illegal. How can it be different when you're doing exactly the same thing?

Give me buttons and dials any day!

Sorry OP - you're obviously very remorseful but this is one you'll have to take on the chin and learn from. I did look to see if this was one of the offenses that they offer driver education courses for, but it doesn't look like it.

I disagree. The law is not to use a mobile phone whilst in control of a vehicle. Even when sat in traffic you are still in control of your vehicle. So many times I have seen people using their phones and the traffic moves off while they sit tapping on their phones then panic and zoom off.

OP has taken it well and with good grace.

I received a speeding ticket for the first time last year after 45 years of driving (I missed a 30mph sign on a dual carriageway) I was mortified! I did the speed awareness course and found it really helpful.

I do think there needs to be some sort to allowance for situations where you’re sat in traffic due to an accident for a long period of time. Around Xmas I had 2 hours in stationary traffic and whilst I know using my phone was technically an offence I still did it, and think I was reasonable to do so

Agree

@DazzlingCuckoos as I understand it if the phone is securely mounted, eg on a cradle attached to the screen, it's fine.

The offence arises when you have it in your hand and do anything whatsoever with it.