McDonalds fans have been warned that they risk hefty fines at the drive-thru due to a little-known law.
Motorists could roll up to the window for a Big Mac but walk away with a £200 penalty and six points on their licence.
The SunDrivers have been warned they face hefty fines for misusing their phone at the drive-thru[/caption]
A grey area in the rules around using phones behind the wheel leaves Brits open to being collared for distracted driving.
The law was updated in recent years to add a loophole in the prohibition on mobile use to accommodate contactless payments.
Drivers are permitted to use their phones while in control of their vehicle to pay.
However, using it for any other purpose, including while waiting in the queue, is still an offence.
The ban covers any time that you are “in control” of your car, which means any time you are in or around the vehicle with the engine running or even while waiting in traffic with it off.
Touching your mobile device in any of these scenarios is illegal and can see you in the dock and half way to a driving ban.
The only exceptions to this are making calls to emergency services, making contactless payments or using the phone to park remotely.
You are also allowed to use built-in sat navs and hands-free devices and may touch your phone if it is secured in a dashboard holder or windscreen mount, so long as none of these block your view of the road.
So while it might be tempting to scroll through social media while waiting to pick up your food, it probably isn’t worth paying hundreds of pound for the privilege.
And on that note, eating while driving is also a no-no and can see you prosecuted and handed a fine of up to £5,000.
Louise Thomas from Confused.com told the Daily Star: “According to mobile phone laws, you can pay with your mobile phone but shouldn’t use it for any other reason while waiting in a drive-thru queue.
“This law is specifically for any activity where you’re holding your phone.
“As eating often requires the use of your hands, you could land yourself a fine of up to £5,000 and points on your licence.
“This is because you would be driving without due care and attention in the case of an accident.”