Distracted drivers to face heftier fines

B.C. drivers caught texting or talking on their cellphones will face stiffer fines, more demerit points and possible driving prohibitions, Solicitor General Mike Morris announced Monday.

Beginning June 1, drivers will pay $543 for a first offence. The penalty includes a base fine of $368 (up from $167) and four penalty points (up from three) that will add $175 to their insurance premiums.

The same driver who commits a second offence within 12 months will pay the same base fine and $520 in penalty points for a total of $888. By a third offence, the cumulative effect of the escalating penalties will top $3,000.

In addition, repeat offences will trigger an automatic licence review that could result in a threeto-12-month driving prohibition. New drivers will face a review after a single offence and a possible prohibition of up to six months.

“We’re getting tough because distracted driving kills,” Morris said. “In 2014 alone, distracted driving and inattention contributed to 66 deaths — 66 deaths that were totally, 100 per cent preventable.”

The government hopes that the new penalties, combined with awareness campaigns, will change the way people think about distracted driving.

Central Saanich Police Chief Les Sylven, president of the B.C. Association of Chiefs of Police, noted that the death and injury toll from distracted driving continues to mount, despite police issuing thousands of distracteddriving tickets each year.

“It’s clear that our current penalties have not been enough to change this dangerous driving behaviour,” he said.

Karen Bowman, founder and executive director of Drop It and Drive, said she was “beyond excited and pleased” by the government announcement.

“I have to say that what they’ve put in place today not only exceeds my expectations, but also exceeds my hopes,” said Bowman, whose eight-year-old daughter suffered a serious neck injury when the car in which she was riding was rear-ended in 2011.

Mike Farnworth, the NDP’s spokesman on policing issues, said the penalties are in line with what his party had been recommending. “I hope that they have the desired effect,” he said. “I would have liked to see them in place a year ago, but better late than never.

“People are going to have to pay attention, because $500 is going to hit you in the pocketbook and it’s going to hurt.”