Mobile Phone While Driving UK 2025 — Penalties, Points & Hands-Free Rules
Using a handheld mobile phone while driving carries a £200 fixed penalty and 6 penalty points since March 2017. For new drivers (within 2 years of passing their test), 6 points means automatic licence revocation. This guide explains the offence, the hands-free rules, what counts as "using" a phone, and what happens at court.
Mobile phone offence: £200 fixed penalty + 6 points. New drivers (under 2 years) lose their licence automatically at 6 points. Court maximum: £1,000 (£2,500 for HGV/bus). No speed awareness course equivalent for this offence — you must accept the fixed penalty or go to court. Hands-free is not automatically legal if you are not in proper control.
The Law on Mobile Phones While Driving
The Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 make it an offence to use a handheld mobile phone (or similar device) while driving. In March 2022, the law was significantly expanded to close previous loopholes — particularly the practice of claiming you were only "scrolling" or using a phone as a camera rather than making a call.
The offence now covers using a handheld device to: make or receive calls; send or receive messages; access apps, social media, or the internet; take photos or videos; play games; or access any other interactive communication or data function. The only exemption is using a phone to make a genuine emergency call to 999 or 112 when it is unsafe or impractical to stop.
Hands-Free Phones — The Legal Position
A hands-free device (Bluetooth, earpiece, car speakerphone, or phone mounted in a holder) is not automatically illegal — but it is not automatically safe or legal either. You can be prosecuted for careless driving (or dangerous driving in serious cases) if using a hands-free device means you are not in proper control of your vehicle or not paying proper attention. The Highway Code advises drivers to avoid all phone use while driving, even hands-free. Key rules:
- Phone used as sat nav: legal only if secured in a properly fixed mount and you do not touch it while the vehicle is moving. Touching a phone in a mount to change the route is an offence.
- Bluetooth calls: legal in terms of the handheld device law, but if police believe you were not in proper control, you can be prosecuted for careless driving.
- Earpiece: legal for calls, but same caveat on attention and control applies.
New Driver Licence Revocation
Under the Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act 1995, new drivers who accumulate 6 or more penalty points within the first 2 years of passing their test have their licence automatically revoked. This is not a discretionary disqualification — it is an automatic administrative revocation. The driver must then re-apply for a provisional licence, retake both the theory and practical tests, and drive as a learner until they pass again. A mobile phone offence alone (6 points) is enough to trigger revocation for a new driver.
Totting Up — Risk of Disqualification
Under the totting-up procedure, any driver who accumulates 12 or more penalty points within any 3-year period faces mandatory disqualification of at least 6 months (12 months if disqualified once before in 3 years, 24 months if disqualified twice). If you already have 6 or more points and receive another 6 for a phone offence, you may be close to or exceed the 12-point threshold and face disqualification — even if you are not a new driver.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes — you can request a court hearing rather than accepting the fixed penalty. If you genuinely believe you did not commit the offence, you have the right to contest it. However, the prosecution only needs to prove beyond reasonable doubt that you were holding and using a device. Camera evidence and police officer evidence are generally strong. If convicted at court, the fine can be higher than the fixed penalty (up to £1,000), though court costs may be ordered either way. Take legal advice before contesting.
No. You are still driving in the legal sense while your engine is running and you are in control of the vehicle, even if stationary at lights or in a traffic queue. The offence applies. The only exception is if your engine is off and the handbrake is on — but even then, you are advised not to use a phone as you may be considered "in charge" of the vehicle. Pull over safely and turn off the engine if you need to use your phone.
Yes, if you were holding the phone. Accessing music stored on a phone or through a streaming app is a "data function" under the 2022 expanded offence. Even touching the screen to change a track or adjust the volume while holding the phone constitutes the offence. If the phone is mounted and you use voice commands or steering wheel controls, that is not an offence under the handheld device law (though you still need to be in proper control).