| Worldwide, one person is killed every half hour due | | | | because it certainly isn't a victimless crime. |
| to drink driving. We've all heard plenty of | | | | 4. Drinking increases your tolerance to risk, but |
| exhortations not to drink and drive … today we | | | | impairs your judgements |
| give you some of the base reasons why people are | | | | Drinking makes you more confident - hence the term |
| so passionate about stamping out drunk driving. | | | | 'Dutch courage'. However, at the same time that you |
| 1. Between 18% and 38% of all drivers and | | | | are thinking that you're the best, safest driver in the |
| motorcyclists killed on the roads are legally drunkThis | | | | world, you also have a severely impacted ability to |
| is an Australian statistic. If you reverse the figures, | | | | judge speed, distance, and general safety. Some |
| you can see that we could reduce the number of | | | | statistics from studies: |
| deaths on our roads every year by at least 18-38%, | | | | - Your ability to divide your attention between two |
| if nobody drove drunk. | | | | related driving tasks is impaired at BACs of around |
| If you want to give yourself the best possible | | | | 0.0005 |
| chance of making it to see your kids as adults, your | | | | - Your ability to be vigilant, or unceasing, in giving |
| grandkids as cute as can be, becoming a millionaire or | | | | your attention to driving is impaired at around BAC |
| finally buying a new Monaro, you would be smart not | | | | 0.03 |
| to impact those chances by driving drunk. | | | | - Your ability to maintain your road position is |
| 2. Drivers are between five and ten times more likely | | | | impaired at around 0.005 BAC |
| to have an accident when drunk than | | | | - Your reaction time begins to be impaired at around |
| soberThousands of people are killed or seriously | | | | 0.02 BAC, and is consistently impaired at 0.06 BAC |
| injured on our roads every year when they are | | | | - Drowsiness is increased from 0.01 BAC onwards |
| stone cold sober. Driving is always risky - but you | | | | 5. It is not possible to tell how drunk you are without |
| increase your chance of having an accident by up to | | | | the aid of a breath tester |
| ten times when you drive drunk. | | | | That combination of increased confidence and the |
| Don't forget that if alcohol is a factor in your crash, it | | | | fact that everybody metabolises alcohol differently |
| doesn't matter what your level of car insurance is - | | | | means that you have no way of knowing how drunk |
| you won't get any payouts for damage caused to | | | | you are unless you have a breath tester handy. |
| your own or other people's property. | | | | Even if you do have a breath tester handy, just |
| 3. It is not only the drivers that are affected | | | | because you're legal doesn't mean you're safe. Car |
| It isn't just your life that you are playing with when | | | | insurance companies will often refuse to pay claims |
| you drive drunk. It is your passengers, the drivers | | | | (this policy will be stated in their PDS) at ANY level of |
| and passengers of other cars, pedestrians and the | | | | blood alcohol. |
| general public. About three in ten people will be | | | | You're heard it before, but hopefully the stats have |
| involved in an alcohol related road incident at some | | | | helped complete your understanding of why drinking |
| stage in their life. | | | | and driving don't mix. |
| This is why drink driving is so socially unacceptable - | | | | |