Even a nightcap may leave you over the limit the following morning, says Daniel Attwood
Motorists caught at early morning checkpoints are being convicted for drink driving because they assumed that after a few hours of sleep they would be safe to drive after drinking the night before. Following criticism of random early morning breath tests, the Garda has stated it will continue with the practice.
The president of the Vintners Federation of Ireland, Paul Stevenson, said recently that early morning testing would not win the gardaí much support in its efforts to catch drunk drivers. "It is difficult to understand the rationale of breath testing people at that time of the morning. The legislation was brought in to stamp out drunken driving, not to terrorise people on their way to work. If that practice were to continue, the Garda may lose support," he said.
Despite Stevenson's comments, the gardaí confirmed that motorists should not be surprised if they are stopped at any hour and breath tested. "Random breath testing is carried out at all times of the day and night, and this is a policy that the gardaí will continue," said a Garda spokesman. "There is a concerted focus on the midnight to 8am times on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday mornings and these efforts have been fairly fruitful. But random testing is also being carried out at any time of the day as well."
The Garda policy is reaping results. Arrests for drink driving are up over 20 per cent on last year, with almost 11,000 people so far this year facing a prison sentence, a hefty fine and a mandatory driving ban upon conviction.
Although statistics are not yet available detailing the times that random breath tests were carried out, it is clear from Garda comments that a significant proportion of those 11,000 were caught in the morning.
While most drivers know that a couple of pints of beer will put the average male over the drink driving limit, few can determine how many drinks they are able to consume during a night out and still be under the limit the following morning.
It is a risky game of chance. The dangers of driving while under the influence of alcohol are well documented. And it is not just lives that are at risk. If you are stopped while driving to work following a night of drinking and found to be over the limit, you will lose your licence.
According to legislation, the minimum period of disqualification as a result of a drink driving conviction depends on the level of alcohol in your blood. If it is your first offence and your blood alcohol level is between 81mg and 100mg, which is considered to be the lower level, you will be catching the bus for at least three months. If the blood alcohol level is higher, it is for years not months that you must suffer life without a driving licence.
And then there are the substantial fines and a possible prison sentence, as well as significantly higher motor insurance and the social stigma of being a convicted drunk driver.
The Road Safety Authority suggests that while drivers going out for the evening are leaving their car at home, many forget that they can still be over the limit in the morning.
"Our advice if you are going out drinking in the evening is to arrange alternative transport for the following morning as well," says the RSA's Brian Farrell. "There is only one failsafe way of ensuring that you do not become a drink driver and that is to get alternative transport."
But many motorists do need to drive the following morning so it is not surprising that sales of personal breathalysers are on the rise. Barry Sweeney, managing director of Safer Drive, a company established earlier this year to sell breathalysers, says sales of the €99 breath analysing equipment have rocketed since random testing was introduced earlier this year.
"We have sold over 1,800 breathalysers since July. We didn't expect anything like this demand," he says. "Random breath testing has really changed the landscape, and people are now realising that just three or four pints can put them close to or over the limit early the next morning."
While the result of a personal breathalyser test that indicates a driver has below the 80mg threshold of alcohol in his blood cannot be used as a defence in court, such devices do provide an accurate reading to inform drivers if they are over the limit. However, erring on the side of caution, companies supplying breath testers such as Safer Drive advise that motorists who have a reading over 50mg should not risk driving.
According to the company, it is not heavy drinkers who are buying the breathalysers to see if they can manage another G&T before driving, but rather motorists who are concerned that a few drinks the night before could put them over the limit the following morning.
According to Safer Drive, a typical male could have 200mg per 100ml of alcohol in his blood at midnight following an evening of drinking. At 7.30 the following morning he will still be well over the limit. Indeed, it would not be safe for our motorist to get back behind the wheel until 10:30am.
However, there is no absolute guide as to how much alcohol can be safely consumed before driving. Gender, weight, food consumption and metabolic rate all affect how quickly alcohol is absorbed.
Therefore, as the Road Safety Authority says, if you intend to drive, the only safe amount of alcohol is no alcohol.