Let me start by writing that I don't think that people should drive and use a mobile phone at the same time. I was wondering if it is an offence to hold a mobile phone whilst driving and I was told that the police would check the phone records to see if you were using it. Let's say that you weren't. Would you still be prosecuted? If you have been stopped by the police and they have checked your records then they must be suspecting that you are driving without due care.
What if you were holding a piece of fruit? I was told that there have been prosecutions for eating fruit and the person who told me also said that they had eaten fruit whilst driving many times. They also said they set off driving and put on their belt while they are slowly moving.
It strikes me that everyone is guilty of something especially when you have so many new laws coming out of Westminster that even the law makers can't keep up with them. It also strikes me that if the Government wanted to stop some aspect of bad driving then they could do so. What about a car that only starts when the belt is fastened? What about cars that don't go past the speed limit?
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Why would you be holding the phone if you were not planning to use it? Even if only to look and see who was calling you. That would be paying more attention to the phone than to what was going on around you on the road.
ReplyDelete"What if you were holding a piece of fruit? I was told that there have been prosecutions for eating fruit and the person who told me also said that they had eaten fruit whilst driving many times."
I admit to having done the following in the past:-
1. Driven with an open bag of chips on the front passenger seat and taken one at a time (without looking sideways at the chip store) to eat at times during the journey when there were no special hazards e.g. junction, bend, oncoming taffic etc.
2. Eaten an apple while driving but clenching it between my teeth while negotiating a hazard.
In either case I think I might be prepared to plead not guilty to a charge of driving without due care and attention on the grounds of having thought the situation out beforehand and being in a situation where chip/apple could be abandoned instantly in favour of dealing with sudden hazard.
"They also said they set off driving and put on their belt while they are slowly moving."
So if someone smashes into the back of their car before they've fastened the seat belt????? Pretty stupid really.
Thanks for your comment. The point about holding the phone (or anything) was about testing the extent of the law and how defence lawyers may prepare their defence. I think you are doing the same thing with the bulk of your comment because it questions what is sensible and what is not. As for the slow movement before putting on the belt, I think they were on their own drive. What some people see as safe and sensible, others see as reckless.
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