Conviction from using Hands-free Mobile Phone Kit

The debate over use of hands-free mobile phone equipment while driving shows no sign of going away.

Whilst it is legal to use hands-free equipment in the UK, there are serious doubts about just how safe it is. Can the distraction of a phone call be a contributory factor in motoring accidents?

This issue has been highlighted recently by the case of Lynn-Marie Howden who had a collision with another car. The driver of the other car needed to be cut free but subsequently died from a heart attack.

Ms Howden was charged with causing death by dangerous driving but was actually found guilty of the lesser charge of careless driving. She was fined over £2,000 and banned from driving for a year.

A significant issue in the case was that Ms Howden had been talking on her phone at the time of the accident and for more than half an hour before, albeit using hands-free equipment.

A comment from Chief Inspector Chris Lewis of Warwickshire Police helps to puts the issue in perspective:

"There are four main causes of death and injury on the road, one of which is driving whilst distracted. In most cases this involves the use of mobile phones.

The law on the use of mobile phones refers only to hand-held devices and not hands-free. To take a very quick call on a hands-free phone is, therefore, permissible but I cannot condone prolonged conversations which I believe to be a distraction.

I appreciate that people lead busy lives and for many their car is their office. But it is not their office when they are driving."

The question for those who drive for work is whether we should ever be making phone calls whilst driving, regardless of the equipment we use. It may be that we cannot be prosecuted for using hand-free equipment, but that doesn't mean we cannot be prosecuted for careless or even dangerous driving.