A woman who has been ordered to pay £996 is among five Watford motorists who landed themselves in court over using phones while driving recently.

It is illegal to use a handheld mobile phone while driving on UK roads even if the driver stopped at traffic lights, queuing in traffic, or holding a phone that is offline.

If someone is taken to court they can be banned from driving or riding and could face a maximum £1,000 fine, which is just what happened to these five Watford residents over the last two months.

Zelpha Louise Chapman

Zelpha Louise, of Elton Way, used a phone while driving a Land Rover on the M25 near South Mimms on May 19, 2023.

After appearing in Stevenage Magistrates’ Court and pleading guilty on April 4, the 50-year-old was ordered to pay a £996 total including a £633 fine, £253 victim services surcharge, and £110 in costs.

She received six points on her licence.

David Beckford

David Beckford, 60, drove a Vauxhall Astra in Watford Road, St Albans, while using a phone on May 21, 2023.

Appearing in Stevenage Magistrates’ Court on May 2 this year, the Gisburne Way resident pleaded guilty to the offence as well as speeding at 44mph in the same 30mph road on the same day.

He was ordered to pay £690 in total and his driving record was endorsed with six points.

Jamal Ahmad

Provisional licence holder Jamal Ahmad, 21, drove a Toyota Yaris in Sawyers Hill, Richmond Park, on September 6 last year unaccompanied by a qualified driver and without displaying L plates.

Ahmad, of Prestwick Road, admitted to the offence as well as being on his phone in the same road and on the same day at Lavender Hill Magistrates’ Court on May 13.

He was ordered to pay a £561 total and his driving record was endorsed with six points.

Mohammad Aswad Rathore

After driving a BMW 3 Series in Cambridge Road, Kingston upon Thames, while using a phone on October 7, 2023, Mohammad Aswad Rathore admitted to the offence at Bromley Magistrates’ Court on May 23.

The 22-year-old Croxley View resident was ordered to pay a £184 total and disqualified from driving for six months due to repeat offending.

Andrew Mark Robinson

Andrew Mark Robinson, 58, of Longcroft, drove a Porsche Cayenne on the M25 near Thorpe Green while using a phone on July 5, 2023.

He was ordered to pay a total of £101 by Guildford Magistrates’ Court on April 22 and disqualified from driving for six months as a points disqualification.