Skip to main content

Nearly 10,000 distracted drivers caught twice in last four years

Data received by the BBC following a Freedom of Information request to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) reveals that almost 10,000 drivers have been caught twice for being distracted while driving, including using a mobile phone, in the last four years. The data refers to the number of drivers who have received CU80 endorsements in the past four years, which is how long the DVLA keeps its records. CU80 endorsements, which carry a three point penalty, cover a breach of requirements regarding
November 4, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Data received by the BBC following a Freedom of Information request to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) reveals that almost 10,000 drivers have been caught twice for being distracted while driving, including using a mobile phone, in the last four years.

The data refers to the number of drivers who have received CU80 endorsements in the past four years, which is how long the DVLA keeps its records. CU80 endorsements, which carry a three point penalty, cover a breach of requirements regarding control of the vehicle, such as using a mobile telephone.

From 2012 to 2015, 228,301 drivers received one CU80 endorsement and 9,722 drivers were endorsed twice. The figures also show that more than 600 people were caught three times and one driver five times.

The findings come as a foreign truck driver, Tomasz Kroker, was jailed for ten years for causing a fatal crash on the A34 in Berkshire while using a mobile phone.

The UK government has promised stricter penalties for distracted driving and September announced it was looking at plans to double the penalty to six points from the current three.

Related Content

  • ITS World Congress debates perceptions of enforcement
    December 4, 2012
    The technical programme of this year’s ITS World Congress in Vienna includes a special session on the image of enforcement. ITS International examines the scale of the problem and what can be done about it. Debate on the merits and difficulties of enforcing speed limits appears centred on a conflict of principles. Put very simply, local communities, people living close to busy or hazardous roads, want to see traffic speeds calmed. Drivers on those roads, on the whole, want their principle of freedom to be m
  • Three-quarters of UK drivers ‘don’t want a driverless car’
    July 31, 2015
    This week the government announced plans to put US$31 million into the research of driverless cars. Thanks to this funding, autonomous cars are set to be trialled in the UK by the end of the year. With this in mind, independent vehicle supply group OSV carried out a survey to find out if they wanted driverless cars. Surveys were previously carried out when the conception of autonomous cars was first released. OSV wanted to know if opinions about driverless cars have changed now the research has develope
  • Transport Systems Catapult boss: ‘We can’t build our way out of congestion’
    March 4, 2019
    The UK Transport Systems Catapult’s CEO Paul Campion talks to Colin Sowman about helping companies develop tomorrow’s solutions – and explains why you can never build your way to empty roads The future of mobility is going to be driven by services.” That’s the opening position of Paul Campion, CEO of the Transport Systems Catapult (TSC) – the UK government organisation set up to help boost transport-related employment and the economy. Campion was previously with IBM and describes himself as a ‘techno o
  • Wireless technology aids city-wide traffic management
    October 10, 2012
    An extensive hybrid communications network in the County of Los Angeles is proving the capability and benefits of modern wireless technology for traffic management across wide areas. Wireless communications technology has found a welcoming test bed for use in traffic management systems, in the County of Los Angeles. The county has long running programmes synchronizing and monitoring traffic signals over large areas. In the process, combined with installation of advanced traffic management systems (ATMS), th