Queensland woman Rylea Taylor and her two children were on the Newell Highway just north of Moree on September 15 when their car was involved in a head-on collision.

While Mrs Taylor escaped with minor injuries, her nine-year-old daughter suffered abdominal injuries and fractured vertebrae, and her one-year-old son had to be airlifted to Brisbane for surgery on broken vertebrae and a fractured collarbone.

The driver of the Ford Falcon that hit the Taylors’ car was charged by police, who will allege he was driving dangerously immediately prior to the collision. 

The idea of a petition formed after Mrs Taylor learned the laws for grievous bodily harm and reckless driving carried different penalties, depending on the state.

In a statement on the change.org petition page, she said it was her understanding the driver may receive nothing more than a licence suspension and fine. 

“The laws should be the same Australia-wide,” she wrote.

“If you drive recklessly and destroy the lives of others, you should be punished. You don’t deserve to drive.

“A suspended licence and fine changes nothing for the driver ... it took teams of specialists to put my children back together.” 

Mrs Taylor said although there was nothing anyone could do to control the behaviour of others on the road, adequate deterrents needed to be in place.

“If someone has destroyed another person’s life, they don’t deserve a slap on the wrist and a right to a second chance – stand up, take their licence off them and punish them accordingly,” she said.