European cell phone, texting roundup

Last updated: December 28, 2021
In Spain, the traffic law was revised in late 2021 to provide for 6 demerit points vs. the license for holding cell phones while driving. The tougher new traffic rules — which go into effect in late March 2022 — also make prosecution of mobile phone offenses easier, as police only have to witness the holding of the phone to write a citation — not its active use. Fine remains 200 Euros.

(View the British distracted driving news page and the International distracted driving news page.)

In Spain, a plan to toughen mobile phone laws for drivers is advancing in parliament. The new Traffic, Circulation and Road Safety law provides for 6 demerit points vs. the license for holding cell phones while driving. The legislation was approved in the House and headed for the Senate as of early October 2021.

In Belgium, Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden wants the hands-free law expanded to cover most electronic devices. “Technology has advanced to such an extent that the legislation no longer corresponds to reality,” she said March 10. A bill that would expand the law was submitted in February 2021 by federal MP Jef Van den Bergh.

In Northern Ireland, the Infrastructure minister signaled intent to bring electronic distracted driving penalties in line with those of Britain. Nichola Mallon wants to hike fines to 200 pounds and 6 demerit points vs. the driver’s license. Current penalties are 60 pounds and 3 demerits. “This will send a very serious message to all drivers of all ages and a particularly strong message to our new drivers,” Mallon told BBC viewers March 9. “It’s not acceptable that penalties for such a serious offense only currently carry a fine of 60 pounds and 3 penalty points.” A recent study showed more than half of Northern Ireland drivers supported increased penalties.

In Sweden, about 350 motorists have run afoul of the country’s 4-month-old ban on handheld cell phone use by drivers. The fine is 1,500 kronors (about $170 US). The law went into effect Feb. 1, 2018 The Swedish Transport Agency blames mobile use for about 100 traffic accidents a year.

French drivers are not permitted to pull over to the roadside and use their mobile phones, according to a high court ruling. Drivers must be in designated parking spots to avoid the possible €135 fine for mobile phone use while driving. The exception is if a motorist has broken down. The government, meanwhile, wants to suspend the driver’s licenses of those who use mobiles while creating a danger to others. The country is trying to deal with a soaring accident rate, and recently reduced speed limits.

In Sweden, the government has placed restrictions on drivers’ use of cell phones — although it appears unclear exactly what they are. The country, one of the few in Europe that allow use of mobiles without hands-free devices, says motorists can be cited for use of the devices if the result is “detrimental” to their driving. “What that means is up to the police,” a Swedish Transit Authority official told SVT. The rule went into effect Dec. 1, 2013.

Almost all EU nations prohibit use of handheld electronic devices while driving. Sweden, Albania, Serbia, Moldova and Malta are among the few European nations without bans on handheld cell phone use by drivers.

In Sweden, the National Road and Transport Institute told the government that there was no reason to regulate drivers’ use of handheld communications devices such as smartphones. The board said in April 2012 that drivers likely would ignore any ban and that distracted driving laws don’t lower crash rates.

Almost half of German drivers say they use cell phones while driving. That compares with 6 percent of U.K. drivers, according to a European motor safety poll. Ford Motor Company commissioned the survey 4,300 drivers from Spain, Italy, France, Germany and Britain. In Italy, 14 percent of the respondents admitted they had text messaged while driving.

“This survey clearly demonstrates the urgent need for us all to improve our concentration levels behind the wheel,” said Stuart Southgate of Ford Europe’s Automotive Safety Office. Six in 10 motorists told the researchers that they weren’t sure they would pass their driver’s license test if taken again.

In Austria, bicyclists are now prohibited from using handheld communications devices. The fine for violations in this eastern European country is 50 Euros. Hands-free operation is OK. The Ministry of Transport’s new bicycling rules went into effect in late March 2013.

In Denmark, the Accident Investigation Board (AIB) is seeking seeks a total ban on cell phone use while driving. “We see that drivers sit with their new smartphones while driving and use them like a laptop computer and thus look away from the traffic,” AIB chairman Sven Krarup Nielsen said July 19, 2011. Danish law currently prohibits the use of handheld cell phones while driving, but permits use of mobiles with hands-free listening devices. The vehicle safety board is lobbying Parliament for the change.

In Finland, drivers who can’t stop talking on their cell phones now face suspensions of their licenses. The new Act on Driving Licenses, which took effect June 1, 2011, gives local police the authority to suspend a driver’s license if the cell phone violation is committed three times in a single year or four times over a period of two years. Suspensions range from one to six months under the new Finnish distracted driving penalties.

Total cell phone ban?: The European Transport Safety Council has proposed that all cell phone use be banned for EU drivers. The safety alliance urged “clear and strict” laws banning mobile phone use while on the road.

All EU nations except Sweden have banned handheld cell phone use while driving but allow hands-free operation. Ten of the 27 EU member states specifically prohibit texting while driving.

The European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) also recommended in a December 2010 report — Minimising In-Vehicle Distractions — that employers ban all cell phone use by their employees.

The ETSC is a Brussels-based umbrella group of 43 organizations dedicated to the reduction of the number and severity of transport crashes in Europe.

Scotland is cracking down on drivers who use smart phones. Roadway law enforcement Chief Superintendent Charlie Common said in November: “The use of any distraction device, including smart phones, is illegal and carries the same penalties associated with making a call whilst driving. … We are committed to stopping those motorists who continue to ignore the safety warnings and risk their life and the lives of others.”

In Sweden, nearly 10,000 people lost their licenses for distracted driving in 2010, an increase of 12 percent. Most of those penalized were distracted by cell phones and GPS systems.

Looks like Sweden has nabbed its first text-messaging driver. A Falkenberg man crashed into a pole and ran over a ditch before coming to rest on the sidewalk. The cops closed, being in the area on an unrelated case. He apparently will be the first person in Sweden to be charged as a result of texting while driving. (Sweden is one of the few areas in Europe where cell phone use is allowed while operating a motor vehicle.)

Police in Scotland wrote 180 tickets for driving and using wireless devices on Feb. 25, 2010, as a one-day national crackdown on distracted driving. Among those ticketed: A bus driver reading text messages while crossing through a city center.

Serbia: The Law on Safety in Traffic went into effect Dec. 10, 2009. The Serbian ban on cell phone use while driving brings fines of €60. Punishments of up to €250 and some jail time (five to 10 days) may be imposed if an accident is in the equation, according to the web site Balkan Insight. As many as 20 percent of accidents in the country involve cell phone use, police say.