Luxury Cars and Mobile Phone Use

[cd365]

Hand held phone calls whilst driving are moderately dangerous.... Texting whilst driving though..... why would you do it?

You have no minutes left?

 

[simon the viking]

You have no minutes left?

I will take that as a witty riposte rather than a serious answer

 

[cd365]

Of course

 

[G3CWI]

Rather than write about it here I have written to my MP pointing out the views of the Met Police Commissioner and my own experience.

 

[gambatte]

Sure your MP isn't doing it?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukn...r-Lord-Ahmed-jailed-for-motorway-texting.html

 

[Nigel-YZ1]

Driving home last night I was turning right on a roundabout. Approaching the last exit before mine I saw a white van hurtling along, who proceed to pass 10 feet in front of me oblivious to my presence.
He was on the mobile. Couldn't look round, couldn't change gear, therefore couldn't slow down. So killing me was a better option.

For some reason I've never seen the same behaviour from someone pressing the 'station up' button on their radio.

 

[Arjimlad]

I saw a Porsche Cayenne driver emerging from hotel car park today with the white mobile clamped to his ear. His phone calls were obviously as important as his journey and far more important than any other road user's safety.

Obviously driving such an important car means that he is more important than any one else, anything he is doing is more important than anything anyone else is doing, and therefore the usual rules do not apply to him.

It does seem to be these highly important people in their important and expensive cars who do this more than others. Unless they are builders or tradesmen in vans, that is.

 

[cd365]

If you use a phone on private land whilst driving, e.g. hotel car park, are you actually breaking the law?

 

[morrisman]

If you use a phone on private land whilst driving, e.g. hotel car park, are you actually breaking the law?

Yes, if the land is open to the public.

 

[Lancj1]

I drive an expensive car and I use the Bluetooth. I ride a bike to work three times a week when I can, 10 miles into the centre if Liverpool on busy roads, including a few hundred yards at each end of the M62 which is dual carriageway but treated as motorway by people in cheap and expensive cars alike.

I share the views of a previous poster. Twenty years ago we didn't have mobiles. In the last 20 years, despite the massive use of mobiles in cars that the law eventually reduced, we've not seen huge increases in crashes have we.

There are all sorts of dangerous things to do in cars when driving. Radio has been mentioned, changing cd, opening cigs and lighting it, opening canned drinks, reading maps, playing with satnav etc.

There is a law to cover all of that anyway, but it has to be proved that your driving with undue care or recklessly. There isn't a law of smoking while driving, changing cd while driving etc.

The law for mobiles is a cynical income generation scheme. You can be prosecuted for holding it even if its switched off. Guilty, no defence.

For what it's worth I used to regularly use them, and was prosecuted in the pre points days for the offence. I did have an interesting debate with the police officer, who was up for it to be fair, about his multiple in car communication equipment and road use. I drove an Astra at that time.

Fwiw, the most dangerous drivers are people in old cars who want luxury cars and are bitter, people in luxury cars who get their income through criminal means and women in a morning applying cosmetics. Particularly the latter. I apply that to both my cycling and driving.

 

[cd365]

Yes, if the land is open to the public.

Thanks

 

[morrisman]

Fwiw, the most dangerous drivers are people in old cars who want luxury cars and are bitter, people in luxury cars who get their income through criminal means and women in a morning applying cosmetics. Particularly the latter. I apply that to both my cycling and driving.

And the statistics to support this are available where?

 

[Lancj1]

Based on my own observations and experience.

 

[Kies]

Based on my own observations and experience.

Poppycock ...... Yesterday I saw 3 cyclists riding and texting. 2 white van men talking on phones and driving.
Not one posh car! .... Or any car for that matter!

 

[Lancj1]

And you don't have to be driving. Using a handheld device whilst sat behind the wheel of a vehicle with the engine running is enough for the offence to be made out.

That's precisely the point. You could eat a sandwich etc no problem. The mobile phone law is an income generation scheme.