Roadside breath tests set to soar in June

Roadside breath tests set to soar in June

Road users have been warned that the number of roadside breath tests carried out in June is 50% higher than any other month apart from December.  

‘The police always focus on June as, statistically, it’s a drink drive hotspot,” Hunter Abbott, the Managing Director of breathalyser firm AlcoSense Laboratories, explained.  “With warmer weather, sporting events and barbeques, June is a month when motorists are more likely to unintentionally drink drive the morning after socialising – posing a risk to themselves and other road users.”

Official figures show that in June 2017 – the latest year for which data is available - police breathalysed 36,041 drivers in England and Wales, compared to the monthly average of 23,840 across the rest of the year excluding the Christmas period.

Around 10% of motorists tested positive and were arrested in June 2017.  Drivers in Merseyside were the most likely to be stopped, with 3,010 breathalysed – followed by Hampshire (2,532) and Thames Valley (2,265).  

Almost a fifth (17.8%) of drink drive convictions were ‘morning after’, and a third of all breath tests after an accident were conducted in the morning between 7am and 1pm.  

The alcohol limits for drivers are as follows:

Level of alcohol England, Wales and Northern Ireland Scotland

Micrograms per 100 millilitres of breath 35 22

Milligrammes per 100 millilitres of blood 80 50

Milligrammes per 100 millilitres of urine 107 67

Bear in mind that it is not possible to say exactly how many drinks this equals, as the way alcohol affects you depends on several factors, including weight, age, sex, metabolism, stress levels and the type of alcohol consumed.