Breath test fails ‘highest’ in 10 years

Figures released by the Department for Transport (DfT) this week estimate a total of 6,480 people were killed or injured in drinkdrive accidents, compared with 7,800 the year before.

The number of road accident fatalities where the driver was over the drink-drive limit decreased in 2020 to 220 – down from 230 in 2019, with one in 20 of all reported crashes involving a drunk driver.

However, the number of reported GB road accidents also fell, meaning drinkdrive deaths were a higher percentage of the total than in 2019.

The Scottish Government reduced the driving alcohol limit in 2014 from 80mg per 100 millilitres of blood to 50mg.

Research shows that at that limit you are five times more likely to be involved in a fatal accident than when sober.

A poll of 2,000 adults across Scotland, Wales and England by breathalyser firm AlcoSense, conducted in May 2021, showed that 34% of Scots drivers think their ability to drive is only impaired if they are over the limit.

Hunter Abbott of AlcoSense, said: “Research shows a significant rise in alcohol consumption at home during lockdown, increasing the likelihood of ‘morning after’ drink driving.

“Of those actually tested following a collision 3,278 were over the limit. At 5.6%, that’s the highest failure rate for 10 years.”