RoSPA Press Office : Press Release

January 22, 2007
WARNING TO BOSSES AS MOBILE PHONE LAW GETS NEW TEETH

RoSPA today welcomed the news that drivers using hand-held mobile phones will get three points on their licences from February 27 – and warned employers to be sure they are not falling foul of the law.

Kevin Clinton, RoSPA Head of Road Safety, said: “Far too many motorists have been ignoring the mobile phone law and risking their own lives and those of others on the roads around them.

“We believe the threat of points on a licence and an increased fine will give this legislation new teeth, because those irresponsible people, who think their call is more important than someone’s life, are likely to take the threat to their licence more seriously.

“Using a mobile phone - whether hand-held or hands-free – while at the wheel makes you four times more likely to crash. Employers have a responsibility to protect their employees and other road users by having policies in place to ban the use of mobiles while driving for business.

“It is already law that no one shall cause or permit another person to drive a motor vehicle on the road when using a hand-held phone – and that includes employers. Hands-free kits are not the answer because the conversation still significantly distracts drivers and takes their attention away from the road.

“Employers have a responsibility under health and safety law to manage the risks faced by their employees on the road – and one of the biggest risks they face is using a mobile phone at the wheel. Bosses could be in trouble under health and safety laws if an investigation showed the use of a phone contributed to an accident.

“It is also bad publicity if a company’s drivers cause accidents and if employees are injured it disrupts business as well.”

RoSPA offers help to firms wanting to tackle issues surrounding work-related road safety and its guidance documents on managing occupational road risk include assistance with mobile phone policies (http://www.rospa.com/roadsafety/info/workmobiles.pdf ).

Ideally, RoSPA would like to see the use of hands-free phones while driving banned as well, because people are sucked into a conversation and pay less and less attention to the road, resulting in them tailgating, varying their speed and wandering about on the road.