If you make this common mistake with your sunglasses while driving, you could face a £5,000 fine and up to nine points on your licence.
With summer in full swing and record-breaking temperatures cracking the flags, shading your eyes from the sun’s rays is a must when you’re behind the wheel.
You might also be facing a long road trip with the family as the school summer holidays continue.
But if you’re one of the many drivers who clean their sunglasses while they are driving – typically taking one or even both hands off the wheel momentarily to wipe the lenses – you could land yourself in serious trouble with the law.
That’s according to experts at Select Car Leasing, who say you could be hit with a prosecution for ‘driving without due care or attention’, an offence that falls under ‘careless driving’.
While it’s an offence that sits a rung down from the more serious ‘dangerous driving’, you can still be fined up to £5,000 and you can end up with between three to nine points on your licence.
Graham Conway, Managing Director at Select Car Leasing, explained: “The message is clear here – make sure the lenses of your sunglasses are clean before you set off, even if you’re not wearing them at the time.
“It’s a situation lots of us have experienced. The sun suddenly starts to blind you while you’re driving, you reach into the glove box, take out the sunglasses, but realise the lenses are smudged and blurry.
“You might take your hand off the wheel, and subtly clean the lenses on the bottom of your shirt. You might even resort to taking both of your hands off the wheel to make sure you can clean the very edges of the sunglasses’ lenses.
“But by taking your hands from the wheel, even if only for a second, you’re putting yourself and other road users at serious risk of accident and injury.
“If you hit a pothole in the road while not in full control of the wheel, your car might suddenly change direction, sending you hurtling towards another vehicle.”
Driving without due care and attention, classed as a ‘CD10’ offence, means you’re driving has fallen below the standard expected of a ‘competent and careful driver’.
It covers momentary lapses in concentration – a lapse that might come while you’re cleaning your sunnies - and in minor cases you can also expect to be sent on a driver improvement course if prosecuted.
If a lapse is more serious, you might also be accused of ‘dangerous driving’ – and face a minimum 12 month driving ban and up to two years in prison.
Under Section 2 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, dangerous driving occurs when road manners fall “far below the standard expected of a competent and careful driver”.
That includes when a driver is “avoidably and dangerously distracted”, such as reaching for a mobile phone, looking at a map, or even talking to and looking at a passenger.
Select’s Graham Conway added: “Make sure your sunglasses are clean, but also make sure they’re close to hand should you need them.
“And remember to make sure that the lenses in your sunglasses aren’t so dark that they obscure your vision, particularly if you’re driving early in the morning or at dusk.”
