Dont touch that phone!

Mercenary Keyboard Warrior · 17 Oct 2020 at 10:01

Makes a lot of sense to me

I would confiscate the phone, that would probably act as the best deterrent

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-54578607

Drivers to be banned from picking up mobile phones

Temujin · 17 Oct 2020 at 10:06

Good, not sure why they left it so long to close it, or even reword it so those who were abusing it could be prosecuted.
Who drives and plays a ******* game, that's even worse than trying to call someone imo

ShiWarrior · 17 Oct 2020 at 21:18

i saw this this morning

i thought it was already banned to use a phone at the wheel

[TW]Fox · 17 Oct 2020 at 21:32

This seems fairly positive, it closes a loophole most people didn't know existed until recently anyway and also looks to remove the defacto ban on using a phone for contactless payment in a drive thru at the same time.

I guess the only point you could make is that fiddling with a phone is already illegal - it comes under due care. Not sure why it needed it's own specific legislation.

Meridian · 17 Oct 2020 at 21:36

[TW]Fox said:
Not sure why it needed it's own specific legislation.

Lawyers. It's always easier to get a successful prosecution where the offence is clear-cut, rather than a matter of interpretation.

Kenai · 17 Oct 2020 at 21:50

ShiWarrior said:
i saw this this morning

i thought it was already banned to use a phone at the wheel

The specific wording was 'interactive communication' in the existing legislation, some people were arguing their way out of punishments if what they were caught doing with their phone wasn't 'communication'.

Something that could and should have been made watertight years ago but better late than never.

Hades · 17 Oct 2020 at 22:14

I always thought using it in any way was banned already.

Vanquish-Storm · 17 Oct 2020 at 22:51

Does that mean you can't take a call or send a text hands free?

Nasher · 17 Oct 2020 at 23:00

How long before they ban touching any screens, that will be fun for Tesla drivers

Mr Oblong · 17 Oct 2020 at 23:15

This is going to hurt my standing in Clash of Clans.

Who do I sue?

jpaul · 17 Oct 2020 at 23:39

due diligence - the media seems to be repeating the same piece of syndicated news - will still be able to touch its screen if it is securely on a mount,
they'd have to put an interlock on the in car media systems too, if touch was banned, as Nasher said.

equally this Leeds research they are parroting, what are the details, sounds like a simulation, otherwise those people would be locked up for lack of due care.

Is mazda (moral highground) still avoiding touch screens per se, because of the inherant distraction they create.

Alex_6n2 · 18 Oct 2020 at 00:05

[TW]Fox said:
also looks to remove the defacto ban on using a phone for contactless payment in a drive thru at the same time.

I don't understand this bit.

So if I am at a drive thru payment window (stationary), I am banned from reaching out the window to pay with my phone. But reaching out with my credit card is fine?

Raymond Lin · 18 Oct 2020 at 00:08

Sounds like I got my Apple Watch just in time then! Can control my phone from it and pay with it lol

bremen1874 · 18 Oct 2020 at 00:42

Alex_6n2 said:
I don't understand this bit.

So if I am at a drive thru payment window (stationary), I am banned from reaching out the window to pay with my phone. But reaching out with my credit card is fine?

Yes, unless the engine is off (and properly off, not just stop-start).

Drive throughs, publicly accessible car parks, etc. fall under the same rules as the public roads.

Alex_6n2 · 18 Oct 2020 at 00:51

bremen1874 said:
Yes, unless the engine is off (and properly off, not just stop-start).

Drive throughs, publicly accessible car parks, etc. fall under the same rules as the public roads.

Seems odd and unreasonable to me so I had a read of the proposal

There's a part in chapter 2 that talks about situations where touching a device is "safe and sensible to do so". One exemption proposed is for drivers "making a contactless payment for goods or services that are received immediately"

Both a drive thru and toll road booths would seem to fall under this exemption if it gets included.

Seems much more sensible because paying contactless with your phone out the window is in no way any more dangerous than using a card. Probably less dangerous than using chip and pin, but this is semantics.

bremen1874 · 18 Oct 2020 at 01:22

I don't think paying using a phone was a thing back when the existing law was drafted. I don't suppose that many, or any, people have been done for it either.

Smartwatches are probably a pretty grey area at the moment. I can certainly do many things with my Apple Watch that are currently illegal if I did the same thing with my phone in my hand.

Calm · 18 Oct 2020 at 04:34

Alex_6n2 said:
Seems odd and unreasonable to me so I had a read of the proposal

There's a part in chapter 2 that talks about situations where touching a device is "safe and sensible to do so". One exemption proposed is for drivers "making a contactless payment for goods or services that are received immediately"

Both a drive thru and toll road booths would seem to fall under this exemption if it gets included.

Seems much more sensible because paying contactless with your phone out the window is in no way any more dangerous than using a card. Probably less dangerous than using chip and pin, but this is semantics.

They're talking about existing laws.

Currently, your not allowed to hold your phone whilst queuing/stationary in traffic, which means your technically breaking the law when you use your phone to pay in a drive through.

Like you've pointed out, the new law is looking to fix that.

Akagi · 18 Oct 2020 at 05:10

I thought this was already the case to be honest.

The only time I ever touch it when I'm moving is to hit the 'X' in the bottom left of Google Maps Navigation and then the lock button on the side of the phone when I know the rest of the way on my journey and want the satnav to shut up. But I do that without taking my eyes off the road.

Yes its illegal but the law is pretty stupid. Would the Police pull me over if they saw me do it? Possibly. Would the Police pull someone over if they saw them turn the volume up using their touchscreen infotainment? No.

Akagi · 18 Oct 2020 at 05:27

I'd hope there is some discretion involved to be honest. Personally I think it should all be lumped under driving without due care and attention and using a phone in a mount should be considered the same as using your infotainment, or rummaging in the glovebox.

If you are constantly tapping your phone sending messages to people when its in its phone mount, thats driving without due care. If you tap one thing on your satnav and probably don't even take your eyes off the road, that isnt. If you spend a couple of minutes scrolling through all the channels on your touchscreen infotainment to find a specific radio station or something, thats driving without due care. If you quickly turn the volume up or down or tap to a different favourited station, that isnt.

Etc...

Skillmister · 18 Oct 2020 at 07:38

Nasher said:
How long before they ban touching any screens, that will be fun for Tesla drivers

This is what I don't understand. So I can't skip a song on my phone which is in a mount on car mode but it requires the exact same hand and eye movement to change radio station or (for people with more sophisticated cars

) fiddle with screens