New DGT fine for using your phone while driving!

The DGT will toughen penalties for drivers who use their mobile phone while driving. More penalty points and a possible increase in the financial fine.

The Road Safety Law considers it an offence to manually use mobile devices, navigators or any other communication element while driving. The use of helmets, headphones or any other element that reduces the driver’s attention also falls within this jurisdiction.

Currently, the penalty set by the DGT for this type of situation is 200 euros and the loss of three points on the driving licence. According to data collected by the Directorate-General for Traffic, around 400 people die on Spain’s roads as a result of the incorrect use of electronic devices. This accounts for 20% of all road deaths.

Tougher penalty

But drivers do not seem to be aware of the danger posed by using a mobile phone while driving. Proof of this is the increase in accidents caused by these distractions. For this reason, the DGT wants to toughen the law regarding the use of electronic devices. After several years of rumours about a possible rise in the fine and a greater restriction of points, it seems this will finally become a reality.

As we have said, the penalty is currently 3 points and 200 euros. But the Director of Traffic, Pere Navarro, wants to treat it as an offence on a par with alcohol or drug driving. Currently, the penalty for driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol ranges from 500 to 1,000€ and 4 to 6 points. It is not yet known whether the new penalty for mobile phone use will involve a financial increase, but what is certain is that using the phone while driving will be punished with 6 points on the licence. These rules will come into force during 2020.

Deadly distractions

One of the main reasons drivers use, or we use, the phone at the wheel is that we do not really know the consequences it has. Using our mobile while driving can cause distractions lasting between 4 and 20 seconds. On the road, at speeds of 120 km/h, answering a phone call can cause us to lose 8 seconds of attention, which, in metres, means travelling more than 250 metres without paying attention to the road.

This is multiplied if we are the ones making the call, since we will need more time to unlock and dial. According to the DGT we would be losing around 14 seconds and would travel almost half a kilometre without paying attention to the road. Because we may believe we are looking at the road, but in reality our attention will be on what is happening on the phone. We will be looking but not seeing. It is the same as when we are hearing but not listening…

And without doubt, the most common habit and at the same time the most dangerous, is sending text messages/WhatsApp. This habit distracts us for around 20 seconds and makes us travel 600 metres without seeing what is happening ahead of us. Covering over half a kilometre at 120 km/h almost always results in a fatal accident.