Gardaí say it all ‘went downhill' after they pulled over learner driver on the phone

Sunday World

2 days ago

'It only takes seven points for a learner driver to be disqualified'
Naas gardaí said it all 'went downhill from there' after they pulled in this driver on the M4.
After spotting him using the phone while driving, they realised he was an unaccompanied learner with no L plates who was driving on a motorway.
'It only takes seven points for a learner driver to be disqualified,' gardaí reminded the public in a post on X showing the offending car.
Under current road laws, if you get 12 penalty points in any three years, you are automatically disqualified from driving for six months.
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However, learner permit drivers are disqualified if they have seven penalty points. This lower threshold also applies for the first two years of a driver's first full driving licence.
It is an offence to hold a mobile phone in your hand, or to support it with another part of your body, for example, between your head and shoulder, while driving
The only exception is if you are calling emergency services on 999 or 112.
It is also an offence to access information on your phone while you are driving, even if your phone is secured into a hands-free system. You can legally talk on your phone using a hands-free system, but the Road Safety Authority advises very strongly against this.
The penalty for using your phone while driving is a fixed charge of €120, and three penalty points. This increases to a fixed charge of €180 after 28 days, and five penalty points and a more significant fine can be imposed if it goes to court because of non-payment.
Earlier this year gardaí revealed that they issue about 60 FCPNs (Fixed Charge Penalty Notices) that come with a €120 fine and three penalty points every single day to those detected using their phone while driving.
That amounted to over 21,500 last year.
It followed the detection of 266 motorists using their phones while driving over the course of 24 hours as part of a road safety initiative in January.
An Garda Síochána held a national day of action targeting the use of a mobile phones while driving between 7am on January 15 and 7am on February 16.
They were added to the 762 motorists who had already been caught by gardaí using their phones while driving since the start of the year.
As the daily average of those detected using their phone while driving was 60 last year, the number of drivers in the latest day of action marked a four-fold increase on 2024.
More than 21,500 drivers received fixed penalty notices in 2024 having been detected using their phones while behind the wheel.
A Garda spokesperson said that driving while on the phone distracts the driver and takes their eyes and full attention away from the road.
They described it as 'highly dangerous' and 'potentially life-threatening' for all road users.
Almost 60,000 offences with fines and penalty points have been handed out over the last three years.
Figures from the Department of Justice show that from 2022 to 2024, a total of 59,603 people were caught by gardaí driving while on the phone.
With 21,888 people caught last year compared to 19,106 in 2023, and 18,609 in 2022, it suggests people are not heeding the message
Senior gardaí have warned that drivers are increasingly being caught watching Netflix on their phones as well as having online work meetings and social media interactions.