Motorists are being warned again about the risks of morning-after drink driving as latest research indicates that many are still unaware of the time needed to sober up.

Almost one in five drink drive convictions are the morning after the night before

Research carried out by breathalyser firm AlcoSense has found 44% of respondents would drive before 11am despite drinking five large glasses of wine or five pints of medium-strong beer the night before.

Only one in six (17%) would wait until noon; about the time they are likely to be completely clear of alcohol if they stopped drinking at 1am. In contrast, nearly half (49%) thought a good night’s sleep was one of the best ways to sober up while 40% cited eating a hearty breakfast and 24% thought a strong black coffee would help.

Yet, according to figures almost one in five drink drive convictions are the morning after the night before, and a third of all breath tests conducted by police after an accident are between 7am and 1pm.

Hunter Abbott, managing director of AlcoSense Breathalysers, said: “It takes about an hour to break down one unit of alcohol, and there’s nothing you can do to speed up the rate it leaves your system.

“Caffeine doesn’t work, nor does sleeping it off or taking a cold shower the following morning.”