No Smartwatches Behind The Wheel: Pincourt Man Received $120 Ticket For Using Apple Watch While Driving

A Pincourt man was fined $120 for using Apple Watch while driving. He was also served four demerit points for the same.

Jeffrey Macesin was pulled over in Montreal, Quebec recently. He was under the impression that using the smartwatch while operating the vehicle was permitted.

"I have it in the bag charging while the auxiliary cable is plugged in to the radio and this controls my phone to play the music. So I was changing songs with my hand on the steering wheel. Going towards Vaudreuil, there was a cop car behind me and he didn't have his lights on yet, but then he turned them on and I thought maybe he just wanted me to get out of the way. I was just confused," said Macesin.

Police justified the ticket by citing Section 439.1 of the Quebec Highway Safety Code which states "No person may, while driving a road vehicle, use a hand-held device that includes a telephone function."

"I'm not convinced that the Apple Watch itself is a phone. It's rather a Bluetooth device that communicates a telephone signal from the phone and it has been established in the law that you're allowed to use Bluetooth devices and it doesn't constitute an infraction," Macesin added.

He is contesting his ticket and is considering hiring a lawyer to represent him in the case.