Drink Driving (Driving or Attempting To Drive Whilst Exceeding The Prescribed Limit)
Offence
It is an offence to drive or attempt to drive a motor vehicle on a road or other public place after consuming so much alcohol that the proportion of it in a person’s breath exceeds the prescribed limit under s 5 Road Traffic Act 1988.
If you have been charged with driving with excess alcohol, the Prosecution will have to prove that you were driving with excess alcohol in your breath, urine or blood. The present drink drive limits are as follows:
- 35 micrograms of alcohol in 100 ml of breath
- 80mg of alcohol in 100 ml of blood
- 107mg of alcohol in 100 ml of urine
When a police officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that a person is driving with excess alcohol he can require that person to perform a roadside breath test. If this provides a positive reading the driver will be arrested and taken to a police station where a further “evidential test” is required.
Ordinarily if the evidential sample is a breath test, the police constable must follow stringent procedures and have obtained two specimens of breath which have been analysed and which exceed 35 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. If both readings exceed 50 micrograms of alcohol, it is likely that the police will simply proceed to charge the driver with an offence and the driver will be bailed to attend Court at a later date. However, if at least one of those two readings contains no more than 50 milligrams of alcohol then a further procedure has to be offered for a secondary test to take place.
Penalties
Minimum penalty is a 12 month period of disqualification and a fine of up to £5000. Maximum penalty is unlimited ban and/or Custodial penalty of 6 months.
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