Drivers who cause death when looking at their mobile phones will face life in jail for the first time under Government plans to be revealed on Monday (file photo) CREDIT: ANNA GOWTHORPE/PA WIRE

Drivers who cause death when looking at their mobile phones will face life in jail for the first time under Government plans to be revealed on Monday.

telegraph.co.uk - continues

 

Wonderful! And how about a permanent driving ban for anyone caught using a phone while driving?

 

That's a steep escalation.

I'm okay with that for drink driving though.

 

That would extend to the police and highway patrol as well. I always see them using their phones.

 

I use my phone quite often when I'm driving. It's set to give me directions and show where I'm at on my travels. Here in the states, I think it's practically impossible to get phone records of someone that's caused a crash or a death. It shouldn't be that way. If someone is shown talking on the phone, surfing, or texting, the law should come down HARD on them. Listening on the phone or talking on the phone, I think it should be allowed, but still should be considered if someone is deemed to be at fault.

I wish the laws are changed for getting phone records on crashes or deaths. It should be automatically mandatory to the law enforcement.

 

Define use...
Because there has to be distinction between holding and talking on a cell phone, and/or texting while driving, and using the cell phone, in a holder with a driving navigation App. In that situation the "Phone" is being used like a navigation computer.
Also I wonder if there is distinction if a vehicle is equipped with Blue Tooth and enables hands free answering of phone call?

Werner Herzog made a documentary called "From One Second to the Next", which reveals some true cases of tragedy created out of texting connected vehicle accidents, resulting in deaths.
It's hard hitting but really reveals how the lives of entire families and extended friends can be irreversibly changed by the momentary choice of a driver trying to text while behind the wheel of a moving vehicle. It also shows the damage done to the perpetrator, which if they live, is often also very damaging. Hard to live with the guilt. Many have PTSD like symptoms.

No, texting or talking while driving just shouldn't happen. Unfortunately, I see it around me far too often.

If I was a parent of a young driver, getting across that texting or talking on the cell phone while driving was NOT acceptable would be a HUGE part of teaching someone how to drive today.

 

They are exempt in the course of their duties.

 

Even when they are obviously distracted (drifting in the lane, not moving forward when the cars in front have already gone, etc)? That is unfortunate.

 

Good luck proving that in court.

 

These days it seems everyone is exempt.

18 year old kid murdered a cyclist in NYC not too long ago, didn't even get charged.

 

My bet is that nothing happened to this idiot caught using the phone...........

 

It's the same for killing motorcyclists - anything that's used for transportation that is not a car or pedestrian tends to be considered a "higher at risk" and the sentences are more lenient. I never understood this. However the civil lawsuits stemming from a death will also punish those who harm/kill.

The biggest issue is that car drivers only see other cars - they tend to not see bicyclists, motorcycles, and pedestrians. The Hurt Report (1981) - link below - highlights this:

1. The failure of motorists to detect and recognize motorcycles in traffic is the predominating cause of motorcycle accidents. The driver of the other vehicle involved in collision with the motorcycle did not see the motorcycle before the collision, or did not see the motorcycle until too late to avoid the collision.