Alabama’s hands-free law, in effect since June 15, 2023, makes it illegal to hold a cell phone or other wireless device in your hand while your vehicle is in motion. You don’t have to be texting or talking; the act of holding the device is itself the violation. Fines run from up to $50 for a first offense to $150 for a third within 24 months, and every conviction adds points to your driving record.
What the Law Prohibits
Three behaviors behind the wheel are off limits. Holding a wireless telecommunications device while driving is illegal on its own, even if you aren’t actively using it. Writing, sending, or reading any text-based communication, including text messages, emails, instant messages, and internet data, is prohibited whether the device is in your hand or mounted. Using more than a single button press or finger swipe to start or end a voice call also violates the statute.
The definition of “wireless telecommunications device” is broad. It covers cell phones, portable phones, text-messaging devices, personal digital assistants, standalone computers, GPS receivers, and any substantially similar portable device used to send or receive communication, information, or data.
What You Can Still Do
Voice calls are still allowed if you use an earpiece, headphones, speakerphone, steering wheel controls, or voice-activated technology, provided you aren’t holding the device. Starting or ending a call with a single button press or single finger swipe is permitted.
Drivers 18 and older can interact with a device that’s mounted to the windshield, dashboard, or center console, as long as it doesn’t block the view of the road. A single tap or swipe to activate or deactivate a feature is fine, but that tap cannot open a camera, video, or gaming function. Drivers under 18 do not get this mounted-device exception.
Navigation apps are specifically permitted. You can follow turn-by-turn directions on your phone or GPS while driving. Manually typing an address or destination while the vehicle is in motion is a violation, so program your route before you pull out.
Other Exceptions
The statute carves out several situations where device use is allowed:
- Contacting law enforcement, a healthcare provider, the fire department, or any other emergency service.
- Using the device when your vehicle is parked on the shoulder of a highway, road, or street. Sitting in traffic or stopped at a red light does not count as parked.
- Dash cameras, backup cameras, and other continuous recording devices operating inside or outside the vehicle.
- Law enforcement officers, firefighters, volunteer firefighters, EMS personnel, and ambulance operators performing official duties.
- Employees or contractors of utility service providers responding to a utility emergency or performing critical utility work.
- A licensed physician responding to an emergency medical situation.
- Use of an ignition interlock device.
Fines and Points for Violations
A violation is a Class C misdemeanor. Fines escalate based on prior convictions within the previous 24 months, measured from the date of each prior conviction to the date of the current one. No court costs may be added to the base fine.
- First conviction: up to $50 and one point on your driving record.
- Second conviction within 24 months: up to $100 and two points.
- Third or subsequent conviction within 24 months: up to $150 and three points.
The 24-month window changes what a new ticket costs. If your last conviction was 25 months ago, a new violation resets to the first-conviction tier. If two prior convictions both fall within the past 24 months, you go straight to the $150 tier.
Points on an Alabama driving record accumulate toward a possible license suspension. Third-tier violations at three points each add up quickly, and the misdemeanor classification stays on your record.
Rules for Commercial Drivers
If you hold a commercial driver’s license, Alabama’s state law is only the starting point. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations impose separate, harsher penalties for using a handheld phone while operating a commercial motor vehicle.
Under federal rules, commercial drivers cannot hold a phone to the ear during a call, dial by pressing more than a single button, read or compose texts and emails, browse the internet, use apps while the vehicle is moving, or reach for a phone that is not within arm’s reach while seated and belted.
Federal fines reach up to $2,750 per violation for the driver and up to $11,000 for the motor carrier that allowed or required the prohibited use. Two handheld phone violations within three years while operating a commercial vehicle results in a CDL disqualification of at least 60 days. A third violation within three years extends the disqualification to 120 days. A $50 Alabama ticket can trigger those federal consequences.
How Officers Enforce It
Alabama treats a hands-free violation as a primary offense. An officer can pull you over solely for seeing you hold a phone; you don’t have to be speeding, swerving, or committing any other traffic violation first. If your device is in your hand while the vehicle is in motion, that observation alone justifies the stop and the citation.
The statute reaches further than many drivers assume. Holding your phone at a red light, scrolling through a playlist in slow traffic, or glancing at a text while coasting through a parking lot all fall within the law if you are on a public road and not parked on the shoulder.