Christmas Drink Driving: What You Need To Know

GEPP

16 December 2019

By Roger Brice

Enjoying a drink of Bailey's with family and friends is a tradition this time of year, but it's easy to get carried away with an extra drink or two, and then drive home.

Our criminal defence solicitors will remain on call throughout the Christmas period should you find yourself needing their help. 
They can be reached on 01245 358894 24 hours a day throughout the Christmas break.

As the leading drink-driving and motoring solicitors in Essex, we see hundreds of clients a year at our Chelmsford and Colchester offices that fall into the trap of getting caught drink-driving, a lot of whom having no prior-knowledge that they were over the limit.

Almost 5,000 drink-drivers were caught in December 2018. That's roughly 150 per day and the not so festive figure, accounts for 8.5 per cent of the 56,000 drink-driving offences that year.
 

Confused.com recently conducted a poll of 2,000 UK drivers:

36% said they were confused about the country’s drink-driving limit.
37% said they would drive after having one drink.
32% would feel safe behind the wheel after two drinks.
42% admitted to having driven whilst knowing they were over the limit.
16% of drivers weren't sure how long to wait between drinking and driving.
24% said that they wouldn't judge another driver for offering them a lift whilst over the limit.

Police around Essex and London are more vigilant this time of year

So, how much can you drink?
The drink-driving limit for drivers in the UK is;
80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood
35 micrograms per 100 millilitres of breath
107 milligrams per 100 millilitres of urine

The effect that a unit of alcohol will have on you is variable from person to person.

Variables include; Age, weight, gender, food you've consumed, tiredness, the type of alcohol and even stress levels.

The NHS states officially that there is no safe way to calculate how many units you can drink and still be safe to drive. The only way to be 100% sure that you can drive, is to avoid alcohol altogether. Even the smallest amount of alcohol can affect your vision and reaction times.
 

If you've been caught

You'll need an expert defence from one of our team in Chelmsford or Colchester. A solicitor can request prosecution papers to assess the case and ensure any weaknesses can be found. As well as working on your defence, your solicitor can provide valuable support and advice, ensure that you have the best possible representation in court, which can be an intimidating experience without a solicitor.
 

At Gepp Solicitors, we have been providing legal advice for motor offence clients of generations.

Our specialist Motor Crime Team, headed up by Senior Partner Roger Brice have a wealth of experience in road traffic law and are here to help keep you on the road. For more information, please e-mail