Well that means that everyone can add a carkit to their x-mas wishlist

This is *long* overdue. A nation of white-van conosseurs will be in mourning, but the rest of the nation is yelling about bloody time.

Thats good. I was told it was goingf to be illigal to even sit in a parked car with the engine of talking in a mobile and that you were expected to get out to demonstrate that you are not trying to flout the law on a technicallity, as even parked you are still in charge of a vehicle.

Like if you were drunk and it was parked with engine off you would still be drunk in charge of a vehicle, as someone I knew discovered when he had gone to the vehicle to take a sleeping back out of the back, and the fact that he was not going to drive it (as he was too drunk) did not act as a defence as he was still "in charge of the vehicle" whilst drunk.

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by Chambler
Well that means that everyone can add a carkit to their x-mas wishlist

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Doesnt it also apply to hand free though? because you still have to answer and dial etc i thought even hands free were banned.

And what happens if your passenger is on the phone?

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by Cat
(quotes)
because you still have to answer and dial etc i thought even hands free were banned.

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On any decent hands free kit you can dial, answer the phone and hang up using just your voice, taking away the need to touch the phone at any point.

Halfords and shops like it are doing special offers at the moment where they fit hands free kits cheaper than they used to. In Halfords you can get a hands free kit and have it fitted in your car (they fit it all behind the radio/dashboard, so it's not all messy) for just under £100, which isn't too bad at all.

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by Cat
Doesnt it also apply to hand free though?

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No

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And what happens if your passenger is on the phone?

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About as much as would happen if your passenger was drinking, eating a sandwich, or anything else that the driver isn't allowed to do

(Edited by Kate 10/11/2003 18:01)

Simple common sense really. *shrug*

About time ive seen enough of these prats on their mobile phones in cars, a phone call isnt that important and if it is stop, another scary thing is some people even text whilst driving .

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by Cat
(quotes)
Doesnt it also apply to hand free though?

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The phone must be in a fixed cradle, and even then you are not technically allowed to touch it.

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The phone must be in a fixed cradle, and even then you are not technically allowed to touch it.

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Just curious as even when the engine isn't running but you have the key you are in control of the vehicle..... how are you supposed to actually put your mobile phone in the cradle and get it out if your are not allowed to touch it when it's in the car?

Also how does this apply to all those pda phones and smartphones as they have roadmap functions on them (if you want) how are you supposed to use those (select alternative route as there is a traffic jam ahead) although you are still allowed to use a "not phone capable" navigation system.....

With the mobile phones becoming more and more than phones alone.... as in mp3 players / radio's / camera's / digital agenda's how can this ban be upheld... As this kinda means that all these functions you are not allowed to use when driving a car while you are still allowed to have an mp3 player next to you and switch song... flick radio channels or even take a glimps at your digital agenda while stuck in traffic on a normal pda...

So I kinda see a problem with this law in the future as it's a bit weird that you would fine someone for having a smartphone which functions as an agenda to look in his agenda (thereby touching his smartphone) but not the fine the person that just has a pda which basically is the same thing only not phone capable.

Sure using mobile phones while driving can certainly be very dangerous nobody doubts that but this legislation never actually thought of the other features that these devices have already and will have in the very near future.

Personally I think thats a very bad thing. As to me that shows that the people that think up these laws are not in touch with the real world anymore and have no clue where modern technology is going to.

Phoning in cars should be forbidden but all the other facilities that these phones have intergrated into them which you would be allowed to use while driving if they weren't build into your phone should still be allowed......and this doesn't include a good game of snake!

You can still be fined for using Mp3 players, navigation aids, agendas, etc...

It's called 'driving without due care and attention' and 'dangerous driving'

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by Vinnie
You can still be fined for using Mp3 players, navigation aids, agendas, etc...

It's called 'driving without due care and attention' and 'dangerous driving'

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Yes you can be if this influances your driving so badly the cops notice, but if your driving isn't influanced by it too much no cop would pay much attention to it. While if you use your smartphone to do this they are very likely to do fine you as it's a new law that needs to be inforced and has a lot of political support so will most likely be very heavily enforced.

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by Chambler
Yes you can be if this influances your driving so badly the cops notice, but if your driving isn't influanced by it too much no cop would pay much attention to it.

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It doesn't matter how distracting the use of the equipment is.

Two cases I know about
one women booked for drinking bottled water at the traffic lights.
One guy for checking the map at the traffic lights.

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by Vinnie
One guy for checking the map at the traffic lights.

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That's my bad habit I'm afraid. The amount of times I've said to the kids, 'Tell me when the lights change to orange'

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by Vinnie
You can still be fined for using Mp3 players, navigation aids, agendas, etc...

It's called 'driving without due care and attention' and 'dangerous driving'

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As was using Mobile phones, before it was up to the officers discretion now its a specific offense.