If you are caught either driving or sitting in the drivers seat of a car, and you are over the legal limit, you will be fined CI$1,000 or imprisoned for six months and you will lose your driving licence for a year. Having a DUI conviction can also affect your ability to obtain a work permit in the Cayman Islands. Cell Phones, Texting & Driving A CI$150 fine is automatically issued to anyone seen driving while talking
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on a mobile phone unless it is handsfree or mounted. In section 78 of the Traffic Act (2011) it states: “in order to use your cellular device while driving it must be “hands free” with no more than one action of pressing a button to accept and end a call.” You are also able to legally use your phone while driving if you are calling 911 to report an emergency and it is impractical to pull over your vehicle.
LEGAL REQUIREMENTS
DRIVING LICENCES Theory & Driving Tests for NonLicence Holders For those who don’t have a full driving licence, the path is fairly routine, but the process is quite slow. First, you have to apply at one of the Department of Vehicle & Drivers’ Licensing (DVDL) offices for an appointment for a theory test of driving knowledge. You have 40 minutes to answer 40 multiple choice questions (on a touch screen computer) of which you must get 80% correct. The test costs CI$25 and if there is space available you can take the test at the time of booking. Take your passport on all visits to the DVDL test centre for proof of identification. In the Cayman Islands you have to be 17 years old and a day to be qualified to apply for a licence. To learn all you need to know to pass the written test, the DVDL recommends that you review their official Road Code booklet which can be found on their website, as well as parts of the Traffic Act 2011 and all of the Traffic Regulations 2012. Their website, www.dvdl.gov. ky, has a wealth of information on it, including links to all the traffic laws. Alternatively, there is a very detailed and well informed driving instruction book called ‘Drive Safely in Cayman’ by Graham Walker, who started teaching driving in Cayman in 1992. He has retired from teaching on the road but still updates his book every other year. It costs CI$20 at local booksellers. Having passed the theory test, you can then obtain a learner’s licence for CI$60, which is valid for six months, and allows you to drive whilst accompanied by someone with a full Cayman licence (who has been qualified for two years). An ‘L’ plate must be visible on the front and back of the vehicle. Also make sure that your car insurance policy covers a learner driver; most will require that the learner is put on the insurance. Four weeks after obtaining the
