Overview
- A passenger filmed a motorist near Swindon watching TV at high speed on a major motorway last week, renewing safety warnings.
- Handheld phone use while driving is illegal, with a standard penalty of six points and a £200 fine.
- Courts can impose fines up to £1,000 and disqualify drivers when phone use coincides with speeding or dangerous driving.
- Police run national operations using unmarked lorries, roadside cameras and citizen videos to detect and prosecute mobile offences.
- Safety voices, including Nextbase’s Bryn Brooker and former officer Ben Pearson, warn that screen-watching at 70mph leaves no time to react and urge public reporting when safe.