Mobile phone drivers dodge licence loss by convincing magistrates for lesser penalties

BAD drivers on demerit point “death row” are hanging on to their licences by convincing magistrates to give them alternative penalties for using a mobile phone while driving.

BAD drivers on demerit-point “death row” are hanging on to their licences by convincing magistrates to give them ­alternative penalties for using a mobile phone while driving.

Crime statistics obtained by The Sunday Telegraph show the number of people who manage to walk out of a courthouse still clutching their licence has more than doubled since 2014.

But lawyers warn the attitude the ­judiciary holds towards motorists caught using their phone behind the wheel is changing given recent cases involving people seriously injured or killed by ­distracted drivers.

A driver snapped using his phone while waiting at the traffic lights. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

The offence of using a mobile phone while driving attracts a $330 fine and loss of four demerit points.

People can choose to have the fine heard before a magistrate, either to plead not guilty, or argue their case for another penalty.

That action attracts a court fee of about $160 but can cost a stubborn driver a lot more if they hire a lawyer.

This is a common path for drivers who are at threat of losing their licence because of dwindling demerit points.

MORE: Drivers still can’t keep hands off mobile phones

MORE: Young men on mobiles the bulk of serious accidents

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The Sunday Telegraph has launched the Use It, Lose It campaign after two officers were seriously injured when a man on his phone crashed into them as they were setting up an RBT. Picture: Tim Pascoe

Alternative penalties include a bond without conviction or no conviction ­recorded, both of which avoid a fine and demerit-point loss. Last year alone, 442 people escaped coughing up the fine and losing points in court-ordered penalties.

USE IT, LOSE IT

TOUCH the phone, lose your licence: that is the only message that will get through.

This accident must be the final straw — a young cop nearly died and is now permanently disabled because a young man allegedly couldn’t keep his hand off his phone.

The Sunday Telegraph’s Use It, Lose It campaign is calling for motorists to lose their licence if they’re caught using their mobile phone while driving.

The present $330 fine and four-demerit point penalty is not enough.

Sometimes answering a call or sending a text feels momentously important but nothing is as important as a human life.

The Sunday Telegraph has launched the Use It, Lose It campaign to have drivers caught using mobile phones stripped of their licence.