The penalty for using a mobile phone whilst driving has doubled today – and a special police patrol is out to catch those who flout this law.

If you’re caught using your phone when you’re behind the wheel, you’ll now be fined £200 and get six penalties points on your licence.

Over the next week, cops will be using every tactic in the book to clamp down on distracted driving, which includes drivers who use their phone in traffic queues or whilst stopped at lights.

They may have their work cut out, as between 6 April 2016 and 27 February 2017 there were a staggering 9,560 mobile phone offences within the Metropolitan Police area.

Chief Inspector Colin Carswell, from the Road and Transport Policing Command, said that after speeding, using a handheld mobile phone is “probably the most dangerous thing a driver can do”: “You’re slower at recognising and reacting to hazards if you are driving and using a mobile phone. M

aking a call or sending a text is distracting and can have very serious consequences.

“The grief of a family who have lost a loved one following a traffic collision is immeasurable. Is a phone call to text message really that important? The only thing drivers should be concentrating on is driving.”