South Holland mum bids to end confusion on hands-free phones while driving
Heartbreak mum Alice Husband is making a fresh bid to force the banning of all mobile phone chat at the wheel, including hands-free.
The Tydd St Mary mum, also known as Alice Dixon, lost her son Seth Dixon (7) in December 2014 after he was fatally injured by a driver talking hands-free.
Alice is again trying to get 100,000 signatures on a petition to Parliament, the number required to force a debate, having previously failed to hit the mark despite 27,000 people signing up.
She sees a ban as a vital road safety step but also wants to end confusion for drivers who risk prison by using hands-free.
Alice said: “I just want Parliament to make it clearer in the law so people are not confused about the fact that they are allowed to use hands-free, because it is legal, but if they get caught using hands-free in an accident they are punished for it.”
Research shows phones, including hands-free, are a distraction. Last year, a woman was jailed for three years for killing a motorcyclist when she was driving on the wrong side of the road near Horncastle while chatting hands-free.
On her petition, Alice says: “The government has responded to the research introducing harsher fines and penalties.
“A driver involved in an accident, if engaged in a phone call, will be prosecuted for driving without due care and attention as this will be considered to have contributed. In the case of a death they can be prosecuted for manslaughter and receive a prison sentence.”
Alice is also trying to raise £500 via crowdfunding to pay for posters and leaflets to publicise her campaign as well as appealing to social media users to help her petition go viral.
• To sign the petition visit https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/211419
• For Facebook updates visit signforseth
• To donate to Alice’s campaign visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/signforseth
• Email your letters to: jeremy.ransome@iliffepublishing.co.uk
Previously ...
Deadline looms in grieving mum’s road safety crusade
Grieving mum: ‘Highway Code rule will not save lives’
Death crash boy’s mum in law change call
