For our insured and for our agents who spend countless hours on their cellphones, take heed of the new cellphone law in effect July 1st of this year. At that time, it will be a ticketable offense to talk on your cell phone while driving. That means you can get pulled over and fined $20 for the first offense and $50 for subsequent offenses.

There are some exceptions, you can still:

• Use a hands free device such as a Bluetooth headset
• Use your cell phone’s speaker phone functionality
• Dial numbers
• Text message (WARNING: It is at the officers discretion to ticket.)
• Use push-to-talk if you are operating commercial vehicles
• Emergency vehicles such as ambulances and firetrucks

The law takes effect on July 1, 2008 and there is no grace period.

PMZ Insurance Services commented that, “while there is no point charged for a violation, we are unsure how this will be handled by insurance carriers. The seat belt laws that were put into place years ago do not charge points against your license, but Insurance companies do take these into consideration – especially if there are two or more or if the driver has other violations too.”

If you want more information, check out the attached CHP Cell Phone Law FAQ Sheet or contact PMZ Insurance Services at (209) 338-0385.