Latest drink-drive figures confirm the UK’s underlying epidemic of drink-driving remains unchecked. Neil Greig, director of policy and research at IAM RoadSmart, looks at what needs to be done to tackle this.

Neil Greig, director of policy and research at IAM RoadSmart

The recently released Department for Transport (DfT) figures have revealed that the decade of no improvement in drink-drive related deaths on UK roads has continued.

However, most worryingly, the rate of drink-drive related crashes has actually increased even though traffic fell during the first nine months of measures to control the Covid-19 pandemic. In fact, over one in six of all fatal crashes involved alcohol in 2020, compared to approximately one in seven in previous years.

Final estimates for 2020 of road casualties in Great Britain involving illegal alcohol levels, revealed 220 people died in crashes where at least one driver was over the drink-drive limit compared to 230 in 2019.

Over the same period, the total number of crashes where at least one driver was over the alcohol limit was 4,620 in 2020, an average of 12 crashes a day. Of these crashes, an estimated 1,070 were serious accidents, representing an average of around 26 serious accidents a week and only a minor fall from 1,390 in 2019.

So, while there has been a small reduction in the number of drink-driving related deaths and injuries compared to 2019, when you factor in the reduction in traffic due to COVID-19, the role of alcohol in fatal crashes has actually increased.

Why has this been the case? The closure of pubs, clubs and bars has resulted in more people drinking at home, leading to an increased risk of people inadvertently being over the drink-drive limit the following morning. In fact, an extra £160 million was spent on alcohol during the first national lockdown. Quieter roads led to more speeding and with more people cycling and walking, but also fewer using public transport, the risk factors all increased.

But most importantly, we must ask ourselves: how do we tackle the underlying epidemic of drink-driving? There is no one simple answer. However, IAM RoadSmart believes a much smarter package of measures is needed from the Government including a lower drink-drive limit to reinforce good behaviour, fast-track of evidential roadside testing machines to release police resources and tailored approaches to help drivers with alcohol problems.

Rehabilitation courses work, and IAM RoadSmart believes all those convicted of drink-driving should be sent on one automatically rather than having to opt in. More use of alcolocks – which require the driver to blow into a mouthpiece on the device before starting or continuing to operate the vehicle – and extra penalties such as vehicle forfeiture could all be part of a more joined-up approach to the problem. Hard core drink-drivers are simply not getting the message, and these figures will not improve until policy changes.

The full report from DfT can be found here.