Despite the risks – and the fact it is against the law – motorists are still picking up their phones while driving.

There were more than 650 accidents involving mobiles on the country’s roads in 2013 and over three years 66 people have lost their lives.

And Hampshire’s road policing team has had enough, this week launching a major crackdown to rid the roads of distracted drivers.

They have heard every reason possible, from those who were quickly checking their bank account to see if they had been paid, to others who insist they don’t even remember using their phones and one who insisted they weren’t using their phone, they were just videoing a car that cut them up.

One was even caught playing games in his phone while in a traffic queue and when questioned by officers he said “I was bored”.

But no matter how urgent the call or text, the county’s officers are on a mission to prevent accidents caused by mobiles used in the car.

Crashes like the one that killed 28- year-old Rachel Titley, who died in a head-on smash with Craig Eccleston, who had been texting from behind the wheel.

This distracted him so much that he failed to negotiate a left hand bend and veered across the central white lines into the path of Rachel’s car on the Isle of Wight.

Evidence showed that Rachel could have done nothing to avoid the collision and was an innocent party.

He was jailed for six years and tragically Rachel lost her life – all because of a text message.

Officers embarked on a dedicated campaign this week to target drivers who persist on using their mobile phones. As of yesterday the team had caught 205 people using their mobiles – with still more than 24 hours of the campaign to go.

All of those caught were not only putting themselves at risk but other road users too, as drivers using mobile phones are four times more likely to be involved in a collision and a driver’s reaction time can be around 50 per cent slower.

Sergeant Rob Heard said: “These results are disappointing, and show that many people are still not understanding the dangers of using a mobile phone whilst driving.

“The majority of people know they should not be using their phone whilst driving, but appear not to understand what a huge distraction it is.

“This just shows the reason why we need to run such campaigns and remind people of the dangers, and prosecute those who feel it is still acceptable to take that risk.”

The penalties

If caught using your phone while driving you can expect an automatic fixed penalty notice of three points on your licence and a fine of £100.

The case could go to court and you could be disqualified from driving or riding and get a maximum fine of £1,000.

Drivers of buses or goods vehicles could get a maximum fine of £2,500.

As an alternative those caught may be offered a Driver Diversion Course as an alternative to prosecution. The cost of the course is £85.

The law

It’s illegal to ride a motorcycle or drive using hand-held phones or similar devices.

The rules are the same if you’re stopped at traffic lights or queuing.

It’s also illegal to use a hand-held phone or similar device when supervising a learner driver or rider.

You can use hands-free phones, sat navs and two-way radios when you’re driving or riding.

But if the police think you’re distracted and not in control of your vehicle you could still get penalised.

You can use a phone in your vehicle only if you need to call 999 in an emergency and it’s unsafe or unpractical to stop or if you are safely parked.