More drivers in UK distracted by texting

Nearly 30 per cent of drivers send text messages while at the wheel, according to a new British survey. And eight per cent text-and-drive at least once a week, the poll by road safety charity Brake and insurance company Direct Line found.

The findings, based on responses from 841 drivers, follow a recent Ofcom report which warned of increased levels of smartphone addiction in the UK by users who are unable to go long without checking their phone.

The volume of mobile data transferred over the UK’s mobile networks increased 40-fold between 2007 and 2010.

Brake and Direct Line said other research had shown that texting at the wheel can make drivers 23 times more likely to cause a crash and that using a phone to e-mail or surf the web also causes serious distractions.

Studies in the US have shown that incidents of death by distracted driving had increased, with researchers putting this down to increases in drivers using smartphone technology.

Brake campaigns director Julie Townsend said: “People who text, use the web or social networking when driving are taking enormous risks with their own and other people’s lives.

“We are concerned that the increasing uptake of this technology could lead to more crashes and casualties caused by distracted drivers, as is happening in the US.

Another survey, from the RAC, showed that 48 per cent of 18- to 24-year-olds used their phone while driving.

As many as 15 per cent of this age group tweet behind the wheel, while eight even admitted playing games on their smartphone and 21 per cent texted while driving, compared with just 14 per cent in 2010.

Overall, 12 per cent of the 1,002 motorists of all ages who were surveyed said they made or received calls on phones while driving, compared with eight per cent in 2010.

Only 10 per cent reckoned the current penalties for using mobiles while driving worked well, with more than half wanting stiffer punishment for offenders.