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Record number of motorists prosecuted for driving while using mobile phones

By Ruth Bloomfield
Last updated at 11:52 PM on 13th March 2010

Record numbers of motorists are being prosecuted for driving while using a hand-held mobile phone, new figures show today.

Men are seven times more likely than women to be accused of the offence, which experts say may be as dangerous as drink driving.

The figures, from the Ministry of Justice, show the numbers of drivers taken to court leaped more than 150 per cent between 2007 and 2008.

The number of men prosecuted shot up from 9,656 to 23,649, while the number of women rose from 1,255 to 3,344.

In 2004, when the use of hand-held mobiles behind the wheel was first outlawed, just 445 men and 37 women were prosecuted.

Many more drivers will have avoided a court appearance by paying a £60 fixed penalty fine and taking three points on their licence.

Andrew Howard, head of road safety at the AA, said: ‘I think men approach driving in general with a different attitude from women. They have risk-taking built in.’

Mr Howard blamed the recession for adding to the number of drivers using mobiles. ‘They may feel under greater pressure to pick up the phone if it is the office or a customer,’ he said.

‘I also think people do not really feel at any risk of being caught. These figures sound impressive, but there are probably 100,000 people driving around on the roads at the moment on their phone.

'The answer is that there have got to be more cops in cars, more traffic patrols. It is also true that this only became law fairly recently and drivers have not really got the message yet.’

Katie Shephard, a spokeswoman for road safety charity Brake, said: ‘Every year the Government’s report on motoring offences shows that more than 90 per cent of deaths by dangerous driving convictions are against men – yet this is a generally little-known statistic that most people find shocking.

‘Research has proven that using a mobile phone when driving is distracting and increases the risk of a crash. I’d urge all drivers – whether male or female – to put your phone on to voicemail when behind the wheel. No call is worth risking a life for.’

Research has shown drivers’ reaction time slows by almost half when they are talking on a hand-held phone, while texting slows reaction times by a third.

Earlier this year Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman was fined £350 after admitting careless driving while using her mobile phone.

She was also given three penalty points. The MP was visiting a homeless constituent in South London when she crashed her personal Rover75 saloon last July.