Vancouver Island drivers handed over 300 tickets for distracted driving and seatbelt violations

Turns out BC motorists still need a reminder to put their phones down—and their seatbelts on.

In March, BC Highway Patrol said officers handed out 276 tickets on Vancouver Island for drivers using electronic devices behind the wheel. That’s in addition to 61 tickets for seatbelt violations, some of which were for improperly restrained children.

The numbers come from a province-wide enforcement campaign targeting distracted drivers and occupant restraint offences. In total, over 3,000 tickets were issued across BC during the campaign, which ran throughout March.

“Many of these distracted driving tickets were written for people using the highway system—not merely those stopped at intersections,” said Superintendent Mike Coyle with BC Highway Patrol.

“These numbers prove two things: One, we need to do better. Two, everyone in BC is paying the consequences of collisions that come from high-risk driving behaviours.”

Province-wide highlights from the March campaign include nearly 2,800 tickets issued for distracted driving, 873 tickets for seatbelt and occupant restraint violations, and 87 of those tickets were given to parents for not properly securing their children.

Some police departments even got creative with enforcement. In Nelson, officers used a second-floor parking garage vantage point to catch distracted drivers in the act. In Invermere, a body camera captured a passenger hurriedly trying to buckle up after being pulled over.

Across the Central and Okanagan region, officers issued more than 1,000 distracted driving tickets and 300 seatbelt infractions. The Lower Mainland also saw high numbers, with 603 distracted driving tickets and 145 seatbelt violations—37 of those were for improperly secured children.

A ticket for using a phone while driving comes with a $368 fine, while failing to wear a seatbelt ranges from $109 to $167, depending on the situation.

Police are urging drivers to rethink their habits—not just to avoid a ticket, but to prevent tragic outcomes.

“BC, we have a problem,” said Coyle. “We have a long way to go when it comes to road safety.”