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Festive motorists, beware of your limits this Christmas

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With the Christmas party season kicking off, many motorists are still unsure of exactly how many drinks they can have before being over the limit. This year’s 85% [1] of UK motorists wanted more information on drink-drive limits and units of alcohol.

Government improvements could be to help clear up the grey area surrounding units of alcohol by reducing the drink drive limit to 50mg. This reduction would go some way towards making it clear to motorists that any more than one drink is likely to put you over the limit.

The Government could provide more education on the effects of “morning after motoring”, as many motorists might be unaware they are still over the limit the morning after the Christmas party.

Adrian Tink, RAC motoring strategist says: “Drink driving ruins lives and has rightly become socially unacceptable over the last two decades. So it’s a huge concern that we’ve seen the total number of people killed last year in drink-driving related incidents rise for the first time since 2003 [2]. We need to make sure that this is a one-off blip and not the start of an unacceptable trend. It’s time for the limit to be re-examined.

“We also need to see greater and clearer guidance for motorists on ‘the morning after’. We’re now in the run-up to the Christmas party season and there’s a real danger a lot of drivers will jump in their cars the next morning and unknowingly still be over the limit.”

The Report on Motoring also indicated that UK motorists are not satisfied with other areas of the current drink-drive policy, with 71% wanting more random breath testing and 85% calling for more stringent sentences for those convicted.

Advice to plan your night:

  • If you think you might be tempted into a Christmas tipple at the office party then leave the car at home – book a taxi, use the bus, or have a designated driver for the evening.
  • Think before you drink: If you are driving the next day, make sure you leave plenty of time between that last drink and getting in the car – coffee, food, and cold showers do not accelerate alcohol out of your system.
  • If in doubt, don’t drive: If you think that you might be over the limit or you feel your driving might be impaired then don’t get in the car – it’s never worth the risk.
  • Know the legal limits:

[1] RAC Report on Motoring 2009

[2] Department for Transport: Reported Road Casualties Great Britain: 2008 – Annual Report

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