Fewer drivers get phone fines

THE number of drivers being fined for using hand-held mobile phones at the wheel is falling despite the problem increasing.

Home Office figures show the number of fixed-penalty notices issued by the police for the offence fell by 5 per cent to 116,000 in 2008, from 122,000.

A survey carried out for the Department for Transport last October showed that the proportion of drivers using hand-held mobiles had increased.

Andrew Howard, head of road safety for the AA, said a deterrent – like signs saying "you have just been though a mobile phone check" – would help.