UAE motorists’ addiction to use of mobile phone while driving continues to grow despite statistics suggesting dangers of the practice, a new road safety survey revealed.

RoadSafetyUAE in association with QIC Insured (insurance company)interacted with 1,033 residents across the country in a new YouGov survey revealing that at least 74 per cent motorists use mobile phone while driving.

The survey covered different nationalities and age groups in all the emirates, highlighting the country’s obsession with mobile phones.

“What we have found out through this is very scary, people are still sticking to the old habits in a very irrational way. It seems, they are so hooked and addicted to using mobile phone they do not rationalise anymore,” said Thomas Edelmann, Founder & Managing Director of RoadSafetyUAE.

The fact that the drivers are aware of the dangers of using the cell phones while driving but still continue to ignore the warnings comes as a surprise to Edelman.

The survey revealed that 60 per cent of the respondents use their hands-free in only half of their drives.

Of those drivers, whose cars have built-in hands-free, 75% actually use it, and the ones who don’t use it, claim better functionality and easier use of their hand held mobile phones. The use of hands-free is more popular with older drivers.

“35 per cent of the respondents said that they use the mobile phone even though their cars have hands-free facilities comes as shocking to me. They say they find using the hand-held device easier. People know it is dangerous, still people don’t put an effort to change their habits,” said Edelman

He said the constant evolution of more and more communication platforms is making it difficult for people to stay away from their phones.

“With so much happening in the social media, there is always this fear of missing out. But does it worth more than your life. If we actually think about it, we will see most of the texting and usage of phone while driving is not essential, but we don’t give it a thought,” he added.

According to the survey, 74 per cent of drivers use mobile phones for incoming calls, and 43 per cent for outgoing calls, 19 per cent for incoming messages like SMS, WhatsApp and similar, and 14 per cent for outgoing messages.

Interestingly, older drivers respond most to incoming calls, while younger drivers lead in outgoing calls and messages.

According to the ministry of interior data, use of mobile phones is one of the four biggest distractors on the road, causing 10 per cent of all accidents, 11 per cent of all road fatalities and 8 per cent of all injuries.

Use of mobile phone without hands-free while driving is a major violation according to the UAE Traffic Law, with violators facing a Dh200 fine and four black points.

However, Edelman feels the penalty is not enough to deter motorists from being constant violation of the law.

“The most striking feature of the survey is that only 26 per cent say they never use phone while driving, which shows that a majority of the motorists don’t care because the penalty is too little and the enforcement is also not that stringent,” he said, calling for a more stringent implementation of the penalties.

The survey showed that young drivers in the age group of 18 to 29 are most likely to use mobile phones while driving and Edelman believes schools and universities have big role to play in creating awareness among the youth.

According to the survey 29 per cent respondents in the age group of 25-29 years use mobile phone in at least half of their trips, while 14 per cent of those in the age group of 18-25 years are guilty.

“Young people are more hooked to the phones because they more social media savvy. This where the role of schools and universities

He also urged mobile phones operators and manufacturers to come up with tools that will help mitigate the dangers of mobile phones on the road.

“I am yet to see an app in the UAE that automatically neutralises a mobile phone while on road and sends an auto message to the caller that the person they are calling is driving. These apps have proved their effectiveness in curbing the menace in the US and Europe,” said Edelman.