The drink-drive limit in the UK should be reduced by three-quarters to remove ‘legal but lethal’ drivers from our roads, according to a leading road safety campaigner.  

The current drink-drive limit in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is the highest in Europe and the joint highest anywhere in the developed world

The limit in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is currently 0.80 ‰BAC (80mg of alcohol per 100 ml of blood).  

But Hunter Abbott, a breath alcohol testing expert and member of the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS), argues that it should be lowered to 0.20 ‰. 

In his column for the Road Safety GB website, Abbott points out that the current limit is the highest in Europe and the joint highest anywhere in the developed world. 

In European countries such as Ireland, Germany and Spain, the drink-drive limit is 0.50 ‰BAC (and lower at 0.20 ‰BAC for commercial and novice drivers). In Poland, Sweden and Norway, it is 0.2 ‰BAC for all drivers and in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Romania the limit is zero.  

“Our limit of 0.80 ‰BAC is far above the ‘point of intoxication’ of around 0.30 ‰BAC where significant measurable effects on cognitive function start to occur,” added Abbott.  

“The bottleneck which is stopping us from reducing drink-drive crashes further is the keystone of our drink-drive law – a lax limit based on extremely limited scientific data in the 1960s to define what was ‘safe’.   

“More recent and robust research shows at 0.80 ‰BAC you are 13 times more likely to have a fatal accident than when sober. In Scotland, with its lower limit of 0.50 ‰BAC, a fatality is still five times more likely.”  

Latest Department for Transport figures show an estimated 6,480 people were killed or injured on Britain’s roads in 2020 where at least one driver was over the drink-drive limit.  This includes 220 fatalities, with drivers over the legal limit causing 15% of all road deaths.  The number of casualties caused by drivers who are intoxicated but legal to drive is not recorded but is thought to inflate this figure significantly. 

“How many casualties could have been avoided if the driver were below the point of intoxication, instead of lethal but legal,” added Abbott, who is also managing director of breathalyser firm AlcoSense Laboratories.  

“That’s why I’m calling on the Government to reduce the limit to 0.20 ‰BAC. It’s low enough so that someone can have a small drink with a meal in a restaurant and drive an hour later. It also gives a ‘buffer’ against contaminants which could, on very rare occasions, give a low level false positive reading from a breathalyser.  

“It’s a ‘safe’ and practical limit to police and with the right educational programme around it, one which I’m sure most responsible road users would support.”  

His comments have been welcomed by the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS), which said last year that the UK’s system to prevent drink-driving is no longer adequate and needs a major review – including a lower limit and improved enforcement. 

David Davies, executive director of PACTS, commented: “Driving while legal but lethal is an area of great concern.  PACTS has consistently called for a lower legal limit.  Laws help to set social norms, as we have seen with bans on smoking in public places.  PACTS also wants to see better enforcement by the police and the use of alcohol interlocks to prevent reoffending.”  

Police Scotland launch drink-drive blitz

Hunter’s comments come as Police Scotland launches its summer drink-drive campaign today (Monday 4 July). The campaign runs for two weeks until 17 July. During their last blitz in December, they tested 2,965 drivers with 628 detected over the limit. 

Latest figures show that ‘driving under the influence’ (DUI) in Scotland is 21% higher than it was 10 years ago. Whilst slightly down on the peak recorded the previous year, there were 7,773 DUI offences in 2021/2022 compared with 6,433 in 2012-2013. 

Hunter Abbott said that while Scotland’s lower drink-drive limit – which was reduced in 2014 – has hardened anti-drink drive sentiment amongst the Scottish public, but there’s still a persistent minority who ignore the law and drive above that limit.  

“When you go out drinking this summer, plan ahead for how you’ll get home – whether it’s walking, public transport, taxi or designated alcohol-free driver,” he added. 

“Even a small amount of alcohol slows your reaction time, inhibits judgement and reduces both concentration and co-ordination – increasing the likelihood of an accident. 

“At just 0.10‰ BAC (one fifth of the Scottish limit) you are 37% more likely to be involved in a fatal crash.”