Those tempted to drink-drive this month are being warned they are far more likely to get caught.

You are more than twice as likely to be breathalysed over the Christmas and New Year period than at any other time.

Festive cheer

December last year, nearly 50,000 breath tests were carried out across England and Wales, compared with a monthly average of just over 20,000.

More than 5,000 motorists were found to be over the legal limit, or refused to provide a sample – a failure rate of one in ten.

Evidence has shown that the younger generations appear less deterred from risking drink-driving than older generations.

The morally unacceptable view of drink-driving arose through the successful anti-drink driving campaign in the 60s, 70s, and 80s.

There is some concern that its success has led to complacency with younger, especially male drivers.

A reduction in the number of visible traffic police on the roads is also cited as another reason drivers feel safer risking one more for the road.

Ready and waiting

“Christmas and New Year celebrations mean Police always ramp up roadside breath testing,” comments Hunter Abbott of personal breathalyser firm AlcoSense.

“At the current drink-drive limit in England and Wales, you are 13 times more likely to be involved in a fatal crash than when sober.

“If you drink four pints of medium-strong beer or four large glasses of wine, it can take as long as 14 hours for the alcohol to clear your system.

“If you’ve been drinking at a Christmas event, don’t even think about getting behind the wheel.  If you’re driving the next day, test yourself with a personal breathalyser to make sure you’re clear of alcohol from the night before.  One in five drink drive convictions are in the morning”.

 

Nowhere to hide

Analysis of Home Office figures by AlcoSense shows that South Wales was the breath test hotspot last December.

Police stopped 6,579 motorists suspected of drink-driving – considerably more than anywhere else in the UK.

Metropolitan London is the area with the next highest number of roadside tests carried out by police, with (2,576), followed by Surrey (2,075).

Across the whole of 2023, there were 276,914 tests in England and Wales – up 3% compared with the previous year – according to the Police Powers and Procedures report published by the Home Office this month.

Deadly shame

“Despite greater awareness of the dangers of drink-driving, it’s a shocking fact that nearly 45,000 motorists were over the legal limit last year,” adds Hunter Abbott.

Nationally, 300 deaths on Britain’s roads were caused by drunk drivers – an alarming increase of 15% over the previous year and the highest since 2009.

The Department for Transport estimates that the total number of people injured in drink-drive accidents was 6,800 – also up slightly.