http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-36475180

Yeah, I could believe that.

The only time I had an accident that was my fault I was distracted by an Ambulance siren. I can only assume that a large majority of the driving population, when faced with motoring safety bodies saying

"No, you can't talk on the phone while you drive, are you crazy? Get a hands free kit!.. (some time passes)... No, you can't use your hands free kit, what were you thinking?!"

Are going to think 'stuff you' and carry on doing what they were doing anyway. It's pretty much impossible to spot people using hands free kits by observation, as oppose to when people are using the phone itself, and checking if someone was doing so by requesting their mobile phone records at every single accident is a massive administrative burden. The only way anybody might ever be prosecuted for being distracted by a hands free kit is either when they admit it or when the accident causes loss of life.

My radio has a Parrot chip, Parrot Chip, Parrot chip
My radio has a Parrot chip
And its easy to take a phone call.

and so on...

I have a bluetooth module that I installed as well as satnav in the car. It's all integrated so no need for earpieces or the like. It's only really there for if I get called whilst driving, or occasionally when I need to make a call. It's rarely anything more than a few sentences and I always say "hang on" if I need them to stop talking whilst I give more concentration to the situation (usually a tricky junction). I find it no more distracting than chatting to a passenger.

What next...... No talking to the person sat next to you?

The explanation I heard this morning was that a passenger is aware of the situation around the car as well as the driver so if the car comes to a situation which requires more concentration the passenger will shut up and let the driver concentrate.

My immediate thought on that was "You don't actually give many people lifts, do you?"

It's the absolutism of organisational risk aversion. There is no degree of fluidity to it - if it increases risk by even a tiny amount, it must be eliminated. Practicality is not a factor.

So when I tell SWMBO that she must go into the boot – its purely for safety as she is far to distracting

HAH!. Yeah, right, sure.

One of the most dangerous cities I have driven in is Oxford in the summer - Lots of lovely young ladies in summer dresses on bikes - SOD the road there are far "better" things to look at

+1
The missus can chatter non-stop and I have to tell her to stop talking so I can assess the situation. If anything, at least I can end a telephone call. Can't shut the missus up.

The whole argument in a nutshell. I present Ivan Locke

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2692904/

My last 2 cars (2010 to today) have had hands-free built in (Toyota Verso and Citroen C3), but I probably use the telephone in the car less than once a month on average.

when i am driving my phone gets switched off ...

Mine is on GPS duty. If anyone rings, they get ignored. Phones are always used at the convenience of the caller.