Research on mobile phone addiction used to support calls for tougher penalties for distracted drivers

Research by a De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) academic has been used to support calls for tougher penalties for drivers who check their mobile phones while at the wheel.

The Government has just proposed new measures for motorists who use their mobile phones while driving by doubling the fines and penalty points for those caught.



CRASH: Leicestershire Police released this photograph showing the aftermath of a crash caused by a driver who was distracted while using a mobile phone while driving

It follows campaigns by motoring organisations including Aviva Insurance which approached DMU’s Dr Lee Hadlington after discovering one in three people admitted using their phones while driving. Of those, drivers aged 18-34 were more likely to be using a social media app while on the road.

Dr Hadlington is an expert on the technological phenomenon of FOMO – or “fear of missing out” which he believes is the leading cause of people constantly checking their phones.

He said: “Constantly checking a smartphone can lead to rewards, and this links into internal level reinforcement. This ‘reward’ system, such as receiving messages from friends and family, or somebody sharing new content, makes that person feel good.”

The thought of not being included in online chats or missing news or updates leads people to check their phones regularly.

Dr Hadlington said drivers who check their mobile phones while at the wheel were victims of the “push economy” where they are being encouraged to keep checking their phones to avoid missing news or updates sent out on what is called “push notifications”.
 
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Last week Transport Secretary Chris Grayling announced plans to raise the minimum fine for non-HGV drivers to £100 from £200, and penalty points from three to six.  

Its figures show a driver impaired or distracted by their phone was a contributory factor in 492 accidents in Britain in 2014 – 21 of which were fatal and 84 classed as serious.

Dr Hadlington said that a loss of focus was inevitable because the brain cannot cope with doing more than one thing at a time.

FOMO is aiding the increase in mobile usage while driving. Dr Hadlington said: “anyone who does more than one thing at any time runs the risk of losing focus on one or both tasks.”  

Dr Hadlington’s study, Internet Addiction and Mobile Phone Use, was published last year.