 Road Traffic Law - Drinking & Driving
Many road users are confused by alcohol levels, drink drive limits and what actually constitutes either driving or being in charge of a vehicle.
Under Section 1 of the 1991 Road Traffic Act and Section 4 of the 1988 Road Traffic Act, it is an offence to use or be in charge of a mechanically propelled vehicle on a road or public place whilst under the influence of drink or drugs.
Conviction will lead inevitably to a driving ban, a fine and potentially other punishments to include community service, curfew orders and in extreme cases, a prison sentence.
The Effects of Alcohol
Drink alcohol slows down your reaction time. At the same time, it can lull you into taking unsafe risks. This combination of effects makes you a serious danger to yourself and others on the road.
Alcohol is absorbed into the bloodstream very quickly, but only wears off slowly. It takes just ten minutes for your body to absorb 50% of any alcohol you've consumed; an hour for your entire consumption to enter your bloodstream. The alcohol that you drank last night will still be present in your system more than twelve hours later and no amount of hot coffee will alter this fact.
What Are the Legal Drink-Drive Limits in the UK?
There are three ways of measuring the amount of alcohol in your bloodstream:
• 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath
• 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood
• 107 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of urine
As a very rough guide, 4 units of alcohol for adult men and 3 for adult women is all that is required before you are legally unfit to drive.
A unit is approximately half a pint of normal strength beer or lager; a small glass of wine or a single spirit measure.
It takes very little drink to put you over the limit.
How the Law Stands in the UK 2010 onwards
In theory, the police cannot stop you and demand that you take a breathalyser test unless they have reasonable cause to suspect you of committing a moving traffic offence, or they believe that you've been involved in a collision. In effect, if there is anything that the police do not like about the manner in which a vehicle is being driven, that is, too fast, too slow or erratically, this gives the Police grounds to stop the driver and carry out a breath test. The Officer does not have to prove or even "believe" that an offence has occurred, merely that he or she "suspects" an offence.
When they pull you over, if they suspect that you have been drinking, for instance, they can smell alcohol on your breath, then they can ask to take a breathalyser test. This applies to any person who is driving, attempting to drive or is in charge of a vehicle in a public place (including pub car parks and petrol station forecourts). If you refuse or the test proves positive you will be arrested and taken to a police station where you will usually be required to provide two further breath specimens that will be analysed by one of three approved instruments currently in use. If the two readings differ, the police will accept the lowest. If you're over the legal limit you will be charged. If you refuse to provide a breath sample without a reasonable excuse such as a medical condition, you will also be charged. You do not have the right to insist on a blood or urine test instead.
If the lower of the readings taken is 35-39 micrograms you will be released without charge but may be cautioned; if it is between 40 and 50 micrograms you must be offered the option of providing a blood or urine sample. The police cannot take blood samples without your consent but if you refuse to provide a sample the police can rely on the breath test results.
Drink-Drive Offences/Charges
The maximum penalty is a 6 months prison sentence and the maximum fine is £5,000.
The minimum Penalty is 3 to 11 penalty points if obligatory disqualification is avoided in exceptional circumstances.
Punishment guidelines advise an obligatory driving ban of between 12-36 months, subject to possible 25% reduction for attending drink driving rehabilitation course.
The Licence Endorsement Code: DR10 DR20 (drink)
What is wrong with drinking and driving anyway?
Aside from the common sense factors the statistics speak for themselves - If you drive at twice the legal alcohol limit - 70mg per 100ml of breath - you are at least 30 times more likely to cause a road crash, than a driver who hasn't been drinking.
Any amount of alcohol affects your ability to drive. There is no foolproof way of drinking and staying under the limit, or of knowing how much an individual person can drink and still drive safely.
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