Here are the top excuses that police heard from drivers who were caught using a hand-held device while driving:
--1: "This is a bogus law." This is the attitude that needs to change. Distracted driving can have serious and often tragic consequences.
--2: "It was my boss on the phone – I had to answer it." In BC, crashes are the number-one cause of traumatic work-related deaths, according to WorkSafeBC statistics. On average, approximately 30 workers in BC are killed each year while driving.
--3: "I wasn’t using it – I just like to hold it." Some even use the excuse that they were holding their garage door opener or hairbrush. The reality is that driving is a complex task that requires our full attention.
--4: "Sorry officer, I didn’t see you trying to pull me over because I was on my phone." If you don’t notice a police car trying to pull you over, how would you notice nearby pedestrians and cyclists? Studies show that drivers who are talking on a cellphone lose about 50 per cent of what is going on around them, visually, while driving and are four times more likely to get in a crash.
--5: "But it was an emergency call to my wedding planner!" A real emergency would be if your vehicle flipped over in a ditch because you were distracted at the wheel by your phone.
--6: "My Bluetooth died." If your Bluetooth dies, pull over, change your voicemail to let callers know you’re on the road and you’ll return their call when it’s safe to do so.
--7: Driver: "I’m using my speakerphone." Police officer: "No, you’re holding your phone in one hand and steering with the other." Hands-free doesn’t equal speakerphone. If you must take a call, use a hands-free electronic device and keep the conversation brief.
--8: "I’m not driving; I was stopped at a red light." This misconception needs to end right now: the law applies even when you’re stopped at a light or in bumper-to-bumper traffic.
--9: "I wasn’t talking, I was checking my messages." Under the law, drivers can’t use hand-held electronics while driving – that includes checking voice mail, making music selections or looking up phone numbers.
--10: "I was just checking the time." There are no excuses for preventable tragedies. Imagine saying this to the emergency personnel and loved ones of someone seriously injured because of your carelessness.
