The phone rings. The call might be important. The temptation is too great. Yannick, a 23-year-old employee from Nice, is no exception. He answers.
This scene is ordinary, except that it happens while he’s driving. This “detail” then changes everything. The Road Code, in its article R.412-6-1, is clear on the subject: handling a mobile phone while driving is prohibited, punishable by the loss of two points on the driving license and a fixed fine of 35 euros.
The young man had experienced this two years earlier. He remembers: “I was stopped at a red light. At that moment, my boss called me because I was late. I picked up. What’s wrong with that since I was stopped? In any case, the police did not see it that way.”
Making a distinction. That’s what Yannick wished they had done that day. Instead, the peace officers followed the law to the letter. Yannick left with a license “lightened” by two points and a fine. A sum that the employee never paid, intentionally. With a voice tinged with anger, he explains: “The police didn’t even try to understand the situation. I wasn’t answering a friend but my employer. And it’s not this experience that convinced me to stop. I still answer when it’s necessary.”
Yet, these penalties are meant to deter such behavior. There is one reason: handling one’s mobile and driving at the same time reduces reflexes and attention by 30%. The consequences can be even more serious: it can cause accidents or even deaths.
Yannick knows it well. That’s why he supports the awareness campaign that starts today. And although he does not know if it will have a “positive impact,” he wants to clarify: “This campaign will at least have the merit of existing! For my part, I am aware that when I pick up my phone, danger is present. In this case, and even if it remains rare, I double my vigilance. After all, who has never done like me, at least once in their life?”
