Facts and Figures
Drink Driving Statistics in the UK
Carrentals.co.uk thinks your road sense is important because...
• 590 people were killed, 2,350 people were seriously injured and 14,050 were slightly injured in drink-drive related incidents in 2004
• In total there were over 17,000 drink-drive casualties in 2004
• 6% of all road casualties and 18% of all deaths occurred when someone was driving over the legal limit for alcohol
• In 2% of fatal accidents in 2005 drugs were recorded as a contributory factor
• In 9% of fatal accidents in 2005 alcohol was recorded as a contributory factor
• Drivers who were impaired by alcohol were most likely to be driving on B roads or smaller
• Fifty per cent of the alcohol in half a pint of beer can be in the bloodstream of an average person within 10 minutes, and all of the alcohol will be absorbed within an hour
• More than one in seven (14%) young drivers aged 17-25 admit putting lives at risk by driving after taking illegal drugs, according to a survey of 1,150 young people by Brake, the national road safety charity
• A study carried out on behalf of the Government shows driving on illegal drugs has increased massively over the past decades and is now endemic in our society - 18% of drivers who died behind the wheel 1996-2000 had illegal drugs in their system, compared to 3% during the period 1985-1988
A survey by the RAC Foundation and Max Power Magazine found:
• 20% of those surveyed (474 participants) said they ‘drug drive’ every day
• 44% said they regularly drug drive with passengers in their car
• 59% had driven after smoking marijuana
• 37% had driven after taking cocaine
• More than half a million breath tests are carried out each year and on average 100,000 are found to be positive
Useful websites:
• The Department for Transport
