Distracted driver crackdown: Australians will now be fined $1000 on the spot if they are caught using their mobile phones while behind the wheel
- Queensland has increased its fine for motorists using a mobile phone to $1000
- The law increasing the penalty from $400 came into affect as of February 1
- The aim is to reduce the state’s death tolls caused by driver distraction
Australian motorists will now pay a heavy price if they are caught using their mobile phone behind the wheel.
A Queensland law has come into effect which will see drivers fined $1000 for the offence, a $600 increase from the previous penalty.
Under the new legislation, four demerit points will also be deducted, up from three, and drivers caught using their phone twice within a year will be at risk of losing their licence.
Queenslanders will be stung with a $1000 fine on the spot if caught using a mobile phone behind the wheel from February 1 (stock image)
The state’s government announced the crackdown last November, which now makes Queensland the toughest monetary enforcer in the country.
The aim is to deter drivers from being distracted by their phones in a desperate bid to reduce state’s road toll.
Around 33 people killed on Queensland roads last year in crashes involving distracted drivers and riders.
And more than 57,000 distracted drivers were fined between 2015 and 2017.
The penalty for using a phone while driving is $337 and five demerits in New South Wales while in South Australian drivers are slapped with a $308 fine, a $60 Victims of Crime levy and three points.
In Western Australia, drivers lose three points and are fined $400, which increases to $484 in Victoria and up to $577 in the ACT.
The Northern Territory has the most lenient laws, where using a mobile will cost you three demerits and a $250 fine.
Queensland will also trial high definition cameras specifically designed to detect mobile phone use on the roads, after NSW rolled out 45 in unknown locations across the state in November.
Drivers caught using their phone twice within a year in Queensland will also be at risk of losing their licence (stock image)
NSW is the first state to introduce laws to enable camera-based enforcement of illegal mobile phone use.
The new changes follow a successful mobile phone camera trial earlier this year, where 8.5 million vehicles in NSW were scanned between January and June 2019, according to NSW Transport.
More than 100,000 drivers were busted illegally using their mobile phones while behind the wheel, which would have equated to almost $35 million in revenue had they copped the $344 fine.
Of the 184 crashes which involved illegal mobile phone use in NSW between 2012 to 2017, seven resulted in death and while another 105 were injured.