SWITCH off your mobile before you drive off or face the consequences is the message from Kent Police.

The force is poised to launch a crackdown throughout February to catch people who drive while using their mobiles.

Insp Mark Flight, of Kent Police's traffic section, said: "We are pulling out all stops to make sure people do the right thing and switch off before they drive off."

He also appealed to employers to remind their staff not to use mobiles while on the road.

Since the legislation was introduced in December 2003, Kent Police has issued more than 1,600 fixed penalty notices of £30 to people using hand-held phones while driving.

Before the law changed, drivers could be prosecuted, but only if they were driving carelessly or were felt to be not in proper control.

Insp Flight said: "People continue to break the law and put their lives and the lives of other road-users at risk by using hand-held mobile phones.

"They just don't seem to understand how distracting these phone conversations are."

According to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (ROSPA), research shows that motorists using mobile phones are four times more likely to crash because of the distraction.

The reactions of drivers using mobile phones are 50 per cent slower, according to research carried out by the Transport Research Laboratory, who found at 70mph, normal braking distance was 102ft; with a hand-held mobile phone it increased to 148ft.

It also showed that drivers using phones wander about, vary their speed, miss more road signs and are less able to keep a safe distance from the car in front.