Driving while distracted is a truly dumb way to die. Hopefully I’ve learned my lesson | Paul Daley

From applying makeup in the rear-view mirror to watching cat videos on the phone, the morning commute is a parade of appalling driver behaviour

The photograph didn't lie. There I was in the driver's seat of my car, stopping at the lights, with one hand on the wheel, the other on my lap and holding my mobile phone.

There was nothing to mitigate in my favour. Not the phone addiction we all have. Not my urgent impulse to check who was calling even though I didn't intend to answer. I was good for it, your honour. I copped the five demerit points which put me perilously close to a three-month licence suspension. I'm now a much more prudent driver (not that I felt I was ever particularly reckless, though I would argue that of course) - slower, more cautious entering intersections and careful never to go near my phone.