The number of drivers caught using mobile phones while driving in Worcestershire and Herefordshire has fallen for the third consecutive year a Freedom of Information request has found. 

So far this year there have been 1,861 caught and fined while in the first year the act was introduced there were 4,422.

Whether this is due to fewer drivers using their phones or a less concerted effort from the police forces it is difficult to know – hopefully it is the former.

Worcester News report:

Between 2007 – when the law came into effect – and 2012, the number has fallen from 4422 to 1861 in Worcestershire and Herefordshire.

The figures were released by West Mercia Police following a freedom of information (FOI) request.

Despite a rise in the number of motorists fined or cautioned for using a mobile phone between 2007 and 2008 from 4422 to 4804, the number has constantly fallen year on year since.

In 2009, 3825 motorists were fined or cautioned, falling to 3204 in 2010 and 2376 in 2011.

You can read the full story here. 

I am a journalist and author. I am a journalist at the UK edition of WIRED magazine. In 2015, my first book Freedom of Information: A Practical Guide for UK Journalists, was published. My second book Reed Hastings: Building Netflix, was published in March 2020. I created FOI Directory in 2012 and have maintained it in my spare time ever since.