Posted By Keith Hutchings July 19, 2001 I was wondering what is happening in other jurisdictions related to whether any consideration is been given to legislating a ban on cell use while driving? Are companies putting in place policy as part or their OH&S policies to regulate how cell phone should be used by staff? What are other issues related to this topic which affect an OH&S Program? Thanks for your response!

Posted By Martin The organisation I work in has introduced a policy on mobile phones in general. It emphasises the managers responsibilities to assess and enforce best practice in order to minimise any risks, and gives guidance based on current knowledge and common sense. Some of these are: minimising use of mobiles, use of land lines where possible, minimising call length, areas where phones must not be used (eg garage forecourts), not giving the number out unless there is no landline alternative etc. In terms of driving, we say that all employees must follow the highway code and excercise proper control of vehicles at all times, therefore the policy states that mobile phones should not be dialled or answered while the vehicle is in motion, hands free kit or not.

Posted By Ian Harper Being relativly new to H&S (5 Years) I am puzzled with certain questions such as this, hopefully some of the more experinced can enlighten me. The issue is a simple one. You use a phone, the police are likley to prosecute you for "Undue care and attention", hands free or not. OK, so you guys are out writing policy that some has to read and someone has to enforce for something that you can reasonably expect everyone with a driving licence to know. You may already have in you Health & Safety policy, compliance with the law and perhaps even mentioned the Road Traffic Act. I spend a lot of time on issues such as this and to me it seems very simple, in my H&S policy, which I am now reviewing...."Mobile phones or cab radio must not be used whilst driving" Am I missing something?

Posted By Ciaran McAleenan I would have to agree with the tenor of Ian and David's postings. This is not strictly a OSH issue. There are perhaps health issues that are still the subject of debate. I was asked to produce a policy for an organisation recently which I resisted. Eventually I wrote the following note to be sent to all department heads for circulation to their staff. Some of the references are N. Ireland or UK specific but the sense was intended to be global. Hope you find it useful. Ciaran mailto:ciaran@confinedspaces.com

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COMPANY MEMO

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It has been the 's position, since the implementation of our safety management system, not to duplicate advice that already exists. Since there is already a significant amount of advice and guidance already in the public domain will not be issuing a policy document on this topic. However pointers to the existing sources of advice are offered below, together with an explanation of how the guidance should be used in the completion of 'site specific' assessments. Mobile Phone Sources of Advice 1. There is sufficient guidance on the safe use hands free mobile phones (HFMP), including advice on the correct type of car kit, available in the manufacturer’s guidance. Compliance with the Safety Manual procedure (Purchasing and Disposal Policy) will adequately address that issue. 2. The use of hand-held mobile phones (HHMP) while driving is not permitted under the Highway Code. The legislation, giving rise to the offence, is Articles 10 & 12 of the Road Traffic (NI) Order 1995. 3. The Highway Code is a control measure in the generic risk assessments (Core Tasks; ‘Travel to and from site’ and ‘Working on or near the highway/ railway’). Whenever individual managers are making or reviewing their ‘site specific’ assessments they should highlight Highway Code Para. 127 to staff using mobile phones and driving. The ‘Notes’ field in the assessment form should be used for this purpose. 4. The DETR leaflet on the use of mobile phones and driving, produced in UK, gives clear and concise guidance. This guidance has been endorsed by the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Federation of Communication Services (the guidance is available as a glossy leaflet or downloadable from their website at http://www.detr.gov.uk/campaigns/mobile). A hyperlink to this will be added to 's intranet site. 5. The output from the research into health effects of using mobile phones and the effects on driver performance are inconclusive and at times inconsistent. Should this change in time then will take account of developments and amend the safety advice accordingly.

Posted By Ron Young George, The most important part of any policy should come from unbiased and informed people who can advise on the legal aspects and ensure that H&S considerations are of paramount importance. They should be written to ensure that there is no misunderstanding in what is meant and for evidence that the company is discharging its duty of care to staff. Your assertion appears to be putting business needs before peoples safety, which can be an extremely dangerous situation. You seem to imply that H&S policy makers are a hinderance to managers. Only to those who don't give a ****. Mobile phone use whilst driving increases the risk of accidents, it is well documented and should be legally banned. There is no ocassion when a "functional manager" should be allowed to ignore "guidance" for the exigency of the company. What did people do before the advent of the mobile phone anyway.

Posted By Ian Harper If you want to make it really broad, can anyone remember the guy who got done for undue care and attention for eating his kit kat whilst driving? Is the company at risk if you ban mobile phones and then omit other causes of driving with undue care and attention? As for hands free kits, there was a case in my neck of the woods, where a lorry hit a guy on a push bike. In his statement, he stated that his phone beeped but he didnt answer it. He still was prosecuted...

Posted By Ken Taylor Whilst supporting John's response to Ian, I cannot totally take Ciaran's position. The snogging and can throwing activities are clearly driver peculiarities but use of the mobile phone whilst driving may well be part of the 'work activities' (taking orders, having mobile conferences, etc) and, if recognised as part of the normal and expected behaviour of employees, implicate the employer. There are, of course, other work activities where the use of a phone (or distraction by one) could have serious consequences (eg on roofs, up ladders, operating certain machinery, etc) I believe that, where necessary, employers should make their position clear in saying that the risks associated with mobile phone use at work must be addressed and phones not used in some circumstances - including driving.

Posted By Ken Urquhart Keith. This is an interesting topic and it has on several occassions previously been raised in this Forum. I have also previously contributed. I apologise for this lengthy contribution in advance, but I believe the second part of your question raises the issues of what is not just a UK dilema but a world wide socio economic evolutionery and safety issue. I support some of the views expressed and disagree with others. I certainly believe that where a Company supplies the Phone in a vehicle which is part of the employees work equipment, it should as a minimum remind the vehicle driver of the requirements of The Highway Code and The Road Traffic Act. I do believe that driving and talking on a mobile telephone, hand held or hands free distract attention and concentration and as such the practice clearly in my view contributes to the potential for Road Traffic Accidents with who knows what consequences. I have first hand experience of being rear end shunted on the M1 in heavy traffic by a vehicle where the driver was using his hand held mobile. I had twice prior to the shunt seen him in my rear view mirror, accelerating from the stop go pattern that the Motorways attract at times of peak traffic, and then observed the momentery panic on his face as he realised that the traffic in front of him had stopped, AGAIN!!!. The third time despite me having changed lanes he hit me. Fortuneately damage was slight and injury was more to him and his deameanour than anything else. There is however no doubt in my mind that that driver was not fully in control and was a liability and a pre-emptor of a Traffic Accident. I believe that companies have to recognise this fact and accept some responsibility for the way mobiles are used by their drivers. I currently live and work in Hong Kong and here on the 1st., July 2001 Road Traffic Legislation was introduced making it an offence to use and speak on and use a hand held mobile phone if you are the driver of a vehicle. (Taxi's and Public Light Buses included). As I have said before in this forum if you take a Cantonese persons mobile away from them it is like killing them, the mobile is like their heart or lungs, without it they can't live!!! Daily, I and colleagues travelling by road to work see 100's of motorists ignoring and probably oblivious of this new law. The evidence of the enforcement rate I have not been able to ascertain as yet but you certainly don't see many patroling traffic police pulling motorists for the offence. I will keep monitoring however. And at length to the scond part of your question. I believe that there are many other areas of work and the work environment where the use of Mobile telephones are pre-emptors for or of accidents. Crane operators, Dumptruck drivers, the Carpentar pushing the timber through the circular saw etc., etc., The interesting thing is that the Phone always takes priority. If it rings, even with WAP, Text, Messaging systems, vibration, flashing lights, bells and whistles, the phone dominates. This is a worry. If we miss a call is it so important? If the Crane driver inching the load to it's final position and concentrating on the banksman signallers signals suddenly transfers his concentration to his ringing telephone and answers it, what is the percentage ratio of times that he can do this before this action is a contributor to an accident. There is some information in the investigation of an Air Crash in Thailand in 1998 that shows that a number of passengers were using their Mobile Telephones, contrary to Civil Aviation safety advice. Following the cabin announcement that the flight was diverting to another airport pasengers used their Mobiles to inform third parties of the diversion after aboting landing attempts in heavy rain, and that there meeting /collection arrangements would have to change. Whether or not the use of the Mobiles and there operating frequency signals interfered sufficiently to conribute to the downing of the plane and the loss of some 140 lives is unclear but the suspicion is there. ( The use of the phones was established by checking the Air time accounts of the deceaseds phones.) It is known that Mobiles and there frquencies can interfere with equipmnt in many environments, (Hospital ICU's, Laboratories, Control Rooms etc.,) and there is risk that selfish and unthinking members of society will blatantly continue using there phones regardles of risk, established and proven or suspected. Enter Mobile telephone traffic accidents or similar as a search engine topic on your computer and see what you come up with. All around the world mobile telecomunications are posing threats to Health and safety issues and the call for bans and enforcement laws to prevent there use in certain conditions is becoming truly International.(Particularly Driving situations). In the UK RoSPA has done a lot of research in this area and considerable lobbying with some success. They are seeking a total ban on the use by the driver of mobile phones. The RoSpa web site has lots of information. One thing that striks me in all these sessions of disussion on this topic is that no one to my knowledge anyway has come up with any statistics. Can we, (Maybe IOSH as a Project) get some base line information together,What is the recorded incidence of Mobile Phone use related accidents. All kinds and categories. Industrial and commercial workplace use, domestic, personal and leisure use. Do the Insurance companies have any infomation about accidents that indicate that mobile telphones were or might have been implicated. (Road traffic Accidents particularly) How many organisations have some corporate policy, rules or procedures about Mobile Telephones, there provision, use and the retrictions, (accident prevention related).And if they have rules etc, why? What prompted them to develop them? What about the behavioural issues, why must we recognise and answer a ringing telephone as a priority, or is this a myth. In the age of an ever shrinking world and advancing technology, society that more and more puts its faith in gizmos and appliances, are we really awake to the potential problems and downsides arising from the appartus/equipment/resource as well as accepting its benefits? Or are we just going to let evolution carry us along. When shall we get the first implant mobile communication device? Will people want one? Will it be a must have? What hazards will such devices bring? Far fetched, well maybe, but they are bringing back (for those young at heart enough to remember him from The Eagle Comic) Dan Dare!!!! I look forward to some real and interseting debate. Regards. Ken Urquhart For anyone who wants to contact me direct e-mail: kenurquhart@pccw.com

Posted By Tony Harmsworth Sorry to come to the debate late but I have been away on holiday. One thing puzzles me, why is it unsafe for me to use a hands free mobile phone but safe for police and ambulance drivers when on thier own in the cab to use thier radio's? The answer is of course is that provided it is truely a hands free set and is used inteligentley, then it is not.