Illegal/Moral Issue - Drink Drivers - How many do you know?

[Ninja59]

How many people have colleagues/Friends etc. who you have some form of knowledge/proof that they regularly drink drive?

I won't say exact specifics, but it is safe to say awkward office conversation when 2 of our team admitted regularly drink driving!

It left me feeling absolute hate/disgust etc. Safe to say I will never be getting in a car with them.

[Type R Tom]

Difficult one, clearly it's wrong but are we talking 3 pints with dinner in the pub (where probably over) or 6 pints on a night out and driving home?

[98elise]

Do you mean under or over the limit?

[Ninja59]

I mean well over the limit, and in one case one of them admitted having 8 pints!

[grumpy52]

Anybody that drives after consumption of alcohol on a regular basis will be over the limit on more occasions than they will expect .
I would support a zero limit ,not that I am against drinking but it is the only constant limit .
We have all had the experience of having a couple of pints and feeling nothing then having the same on a different night and being off your face .

[Riley Blue]

'Well over the limit' - none.
'A pint or two' - several.
'Never drinks and drives' - one (me).

[cmaguire]

Contrary to all the claims, it wouldn't surprise me if drink-driving is as prevalent as it ever was.
Opinion has just become more vocal and polarized.
It is easier to get away with than ever now, so ultimately the major deterent is whatever sense of personal responsibility the individual has, which may be influenced by circumstances at the time.

My opinion of your colleagues would be based on more than their admissions of drink-driving, as would whether I would get in a car if they were driving.

[K50 DEL]

Riley Blue said:

'Well over the limit' - none.
'A pint or two' - several.
'Never drinks and drives' - one (me).

Same here, though it's a topic I really try and avoid as I'd feel morally obligated to shop them if possible.
Many years ago I ran a pub, all the locals knew not to DD when I was on duty as I'd not hesitate in calling plod - a fair few of them were nicked before they got the message I was serious.

[grumpy52]

These days due to medication I don't drink .
Until recently I would only drink on those nights when due to legal rest breaks I would not be driving for the next 24 or 48 hrs .
I have always valued my licence above a couple of drinks .

[grumpyscot]

Well, Scotland has a much lower DD limit than England, and am not aware of vastly increased prosecutions - but that's probably because there are so few police traffic cars in Scotland now (nearest one for a local major accident came from 40 miles away!). And even local police are few and far between.

I know of a guy who has been reported, but by the time the police arrived (an hour later from two counties away) nothing could be done as the "driver" was well and truly ticked up in bed!

[cmaguire]

Where informed decision exists such as being able to assess the driver beforehand, as would happen if several people were out for a meal and the driver had been drinking, I'm not unduly concerned.

What does concern me is those individuals that do so where the people their behaviour may affect have no prior knowledge or choice as a result. So pilots, bus drivers, train drivers etc should have a far higher expectation. I would support work-based breath-testing of individuals in these types of employment.

[AyBee]

Type R Tom said:

Difficult one, clearly it's wrong but are we talking 3 pints with dinner in the pub (where probably over) or 6 pints on a night out and driving home?

Does it matter? Knowing you're drunk and driving isn't a boasting matter!

OP - you get to work on Monday and find out that your colleague knocked over a pedestrian/cyclist on Friday night having been drunk behind the wheel - how would you feel?

[cmaguire]

AyBee said:

Type R Tom said:

Difficult one, clearly it's wrong but are we talking 3 pints with dinner in the pub (where probably over) or 6 pints on a night out and driving home?

Does it matter? Knowing you're drunk and driving isn't a boasting matter!

OP - you get to work on Monday and find out that your colleague knocked over a pedestrian/cyclist on Friday night having been drunk behind the wheel - how would you feel?

Circumstances do matter, but there are those that appear to think an arbitrary limit forms a distinct line. As soon as the line is crossed a drunk appears.
Daft, but there it is.

[Eng274]

cmaguire said:

Where informed decision exists such as being able to assess the driver beforehand, as would happen if several people were out for a meal and the driver had been drinking, I'm not unduly concerned.

What does concern me is those individuals that do so where the people their behaviour may affect have no prior knowledge or choice as a result. So pilots, bus drivers, train drivers etc should have a far higher expectation. I would support work-based breath-testing of individuals in these types of employment.

The rail industry (where I work) is very serious about drugs and alcohol screening. Any time an incident occurs that did or could have affected safety of the line, the default action is to remove those involved from duty and test them for drugs and alcohol. Random testing is also carried out.

This affects not only drivers and guards, but anybody working on the railway in a safety critical role, such as rolling stock maintenance staff, platform dispatchers, signallers, and infrastructure maintenance workers.

[AW111]

The pub I used to drink in had a few regulars who'd lost their licences for drink driving.

AUS is very tough on DD (0.05% BAC is the limit), but I regularly go to the pub, count my drinks, and drive home - I've been breathalysed several times, always safely under the limit.
I don't drink pints, and drink a lot slower than the non-drivers.

[BMWBen]

cmaguire said:

AyBee said:

Type R Tom said:

Difficult one, clearly it's wrong but are we talking 3 pints with dinner in the pub (where probably over) or 6 pints on a night out and driving home?

Does it matter? Knowing you're drunk and driving isn't a boasting matter!

OP - you get to work on Monday and find out that your colleague knocked over a pedestrian/cyclist on Friday night having been drunk behind the wheel - how would you feel?

Circumstances do matter, but there are those that appear to think an arbitrary limit forms a distinct line. As soon as the line is crossed a drunk appears.
Daft, but there it is.

Surely a much better attitude would be - don't drink at all if you know you're going to have to drive, and the arbitrary limit is there simply because a zero limit would result in some very odd and unfair situations?

The "I'm fine I can handle my drink" people are deluded in my opinion. Have they ever actually tested how much difference their "drink handling" makes to their driving in an objective manner or are they just relying on the fact that they happen to have got away with it so far and not killed anyone yet (survivor bias)?

[bad company]

There's still a hard core of habitual drink drivers in my local pub. One in particular stops at the pub on his way home from work, then drives home later. He only lives 10 minutes walk from the pub so why he doesn't park the car at home and walk there is beyond me.

[cmaguire]

bad company said:

There's still a hard core of habitual drink drivers in my local pub. One in particular stops at the pub on his way home from work, then drives home later. He only lives 10 minutes walk from the pub so why he doesn't park the car at home and walk there is beyond me.

That sort of thing is ridiculous but probably stems from habit, in that when he started, socially it was no big deal and others were openly doing it too.

[cmaguire]

Eng274 said:

The rail industry (where I work) is very serious about drugs and alcohol screening. Any time an incident occurs that did or could have affected safety of the line, the default action is to remove those involved from duty and test them for drugs and alcohol. Random testing is also carried out.

This affects not only drivers and guards, but anybody working on the railway in a safety critical role, such as rolling stock maintenance staff, platform dispatchers, signallers, and infrastructure maintenance workers.

The testing should be more pre-emptive though, after the fact isn't particularly constructive other than for punishment.
The testing for drivers and others directly responsible for large numbers of people should be either daily before shift or regular random testing before shift. Most drink-drivers don't think they will get caught or have an accident, and most will not.

[21TonyK]

A few older relatives, 70+ will always argue they are "fine to drive home" after a few drinks out, probably under the limit still but not clever.

Years ago one of the guys at work used to regularly drink heavily at the rugby club on a Friday or Saturday and drive home. Smashed up two cars over a couple of years but it didn't phase him and however much we suggested he stopped he really did not care. After the second one we collectively agreed to let a local copper know what he was doing. He ended up getting caught a few months later.

My biggest concern is people over the limit the next day. I know when I was younger and stupid I probably drove next day close to the limit if not over.

Fortunately my wife rarely drinks so its not a issue now!