As leading road traffic offence solicitors, we often see an increase in drink driving cases at this time of year. With Christmas parties and New Year parties coming up, it can be all too tempting to have one extra drink that pushes you over the drink driving limit and results in a driver being stopped by the police.
Recent stats from Confused.com show that there were 16% more drink driving offences during December 2018 than December 2017 and the figures look set to rise for this December too.
In December 2018, there were 4,761 drink drivers caught, which is the equivalent to 154 a day.
What Is The Drink Driving Limit?
The drink drive limit in England and Wales is 35mg of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. As a general guide, 2 pints of regular strength lager or 2 small glasses of wine would mean you would be over the limit to drive. It can also take approx. 2 hours for a drink to leave your system, and some even longer (e.g. strong beers or ciders).
If you are planning a party night out this December, our road traffic offence expert, Ghaz Iqbal, advises everyone to remember the impact of alcohol consumption, not just on yourself but on others too.
“Drinking alcohol slows down your reactions and responses which can mean that operating a vehicle can make it unsafe for you, and for others on the road. If you’re heading out for a Christmas or New Year event, our advice is to leave the car at home and take a taxi to keep yourself and others safe.”
Ghaz also says that the increase in offences at this time of year isn’t just related to drink driving:
“With the Christmas and New Year celebrations, we see more cases where people are not just being caught for drink driving but also drug driving too. The penalties for drug driving follow much the same pattern as for drink driving. You can face a fine of up to £5,000 and/or six months’ imprisonment if found to be driving or attempting to drive when unfit to drive through drink or drugs.”
Get Expert Drink Driving Advice
If you have been caught drink driving, we have a specialist road traffic offence solicitor that can help. Ghaz Iqbal can advise on likely penalties and offer representation where required. Do not hesitate to get in touch today for any advice on drink driving, not just at Christmas, but throughout the year.
