Hello,
I am a delivery driver and was driving along the Osset Bypass near Wakefield this morning. I have had a very hectic morning and the phone hasn't stopped but I haven't been answering it while driving. Anyway as i was driving around a round-a-bout the phone rung again and so I picked it up off of seat and looked at who was calling. It was the wife and she knows that if i am busy, with customer or driving i will not answer and I'll ring her back when im free. So i clicked the red 'reject call' button and set the phone back down again. 200yrds ahead i was flashed down by 1 police man in a car who was trying to catch speeders with the gun and he had seen me with the phone and assumed i was texting while driving. He asked me to sit in his car anyway and didn't believe me when i said i had rejected a call and nothing else. I even told him i would fetch the phone and show him the 'unanswered' call from the wife that i rejected. He wouldn't have any of it anyway and i was told i would get a £60 fine and 3 points.

Another thing is he has wrote the reg of the van wrong by one character, my D.O,B and also my postcode, i don't know if this may help me.

Any chance i could contest this as it really was a misunderstanding?

Thanking you in advance,
d4nnyb

The wording of the law is very woolly, but it has been interpreted in some quarters that any "handling" of a mobile phone completes the offence. Since you admit that you did pick it up, taking it to court may not result in a not guilty.

Pressing a button on a mobile to reject a call could easily be interpreted as "using" the phone for an interactive communication.

You don't need to have actually been having a conversation to be found guilty of the offence.

Even if you are only holding the phone, you are capable of using it. And clicking the red button was using it.

Jimmy Carr recently got off with using his Iphone to record a joke he had thought of whilst driving.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/news/2009/1...15875-21753256/

This post has been edited by kensys: Mon, 25 Jan 2010 - 16:27

True but the OP was not "recording a joke" and will not have Nick Freeman in his corner.

Jimmy Carr is also lucky that plod obviously does not watch too much TV.

do you think it would be best to just pay up and accept it then? what would you do?

Thanks,

Bear in mind that if officer has written up his notes accurately, he will have noted your admission.

Op they are being very pessimistic

it is down to interpretation of reg 10 and if holding the phone is an offence or not ?

If the officer evidence is that you were texting this you can show to be untrue by virtue of the call records, if you can contest the charge, But it still depends on your admission that you held the phone not being seen as an admission that you were using the phone

This post has been edited by Fredd: Tue, 26 Jan 2010 - 07:58

So what about the ticket itself then. I'm sure i've heard if the tickets wrong you cant be held accountable.

Firstly my DOB is 4.11.1988 and he wrote it as 4.11.1198 and the reg of the van is YK55 HCX and he wrote VK55 HCX and lastly he wrote my postcode as 9DL when it's 9DF does any of this help me at all.

So what about the ticket itself then. I'm sure i've heard if the tickets wrong you cant be held accountable.

Firstly my DOB is 4.11.1988 and he wrote it as 4.11.1198 and the reg of the van is YK55 HCX and he wrote VK55 HCX and lastly he wrote my postcode as 9DL when it's 9DF does any of this help me at all.

Sadly the errors will not help.

Jobo I think we are being realistic not pessimistic. There is little evidence of the mags interpreting this stupid law any other way than handling a phone not in a rest is an offence. Not saying it is OK to use a phone just that there was already perfectly good legislation to deal with the issue.

On the current information there seems little on which to build a valid defence, so on the face of it the best advice would seem to be swallow it and get phone rest.

This post has been edited by 7159keith: Tue, 26 Jan 2010 - 08:54

theres little evidence to the contrary either, is there ?
unless of course you know something we dont

This post has been edited by jobo: Tue, 26 Jan 2010 - 13:27

Only basing my view on the complete lack of evidence of anyone overturning such an FPN set against the constant steam of people who fight and lose.

Personally I think more challenges should be made but an expensive and high risk game. Calling is bad but it is irritating that it is OK to pick up a can of coke or a packet of fags yet some have been fined for catching their falling handset.

This post has been edited by 7159keith: Tue, 26 Jan 2010 - 13:57