Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in the UAE has launched a year-long road safety campaign advising motorists to use hands-free devices in their vehicles to reduce road accidents.

The RTA has partnered with Nokia for the awareness campaign to encourage drivers to follow safety standards, according to gulfnews.com.

Although it is against the law in the UAE to talk on the phone in a car without a hands-free kit, RTA licence department director Sultan Al Mazrouqi said that the regulation is not strictly enforced.

The RTA said that it is looking at stricter penalties and a proposal to make hands-free kits compulsory when registering a car.

Al Marzouqi said the authority will also ask insurance companies to offer incentives to car owners with hands-free devices.