Drink Driving Law in the United Kingdom

There is also a criminal offense of being 'drunk in charge'.

According to the law it is an offense for a person to be in charge of a motor vehicle on a road or other public place with excess alcohol in their breath, blood or urine, but what is classed as being in charge of a vehicle?

In cases of drunk in charge, each case is dependent on the facts relating to that specific case, but as a general guide a motorist is deemed to be in charge if they are the owner of the vehicle, are in possession of the vehicle or have driven the vehicle recently. You are not seen to be in charge of the vehicle if you are a considerable distance from the vehicle or if whoever is driving holds a full license.

For example if someone was attempting to remove a parking clamp then this wouldn't count as drunk in charge as there is clearly no intention or way they could drive. An example of when someone would be seen to be drunk in charge would be if a mother was supervising her son who was driving on a provisional license, when she was over the drinking limit, as she may need to take the wheel if he became unable to drive.

The penalties for conviction of drunk in charge are a maximum fine of 2500, a maximum 3 month prison sentence and a maximum of 10 penalty points, and as a defendant you must prove that you were unlikely to drive rather than the prosecutor proving you were likely to drive.

A wide range of evidence can prove this, including medical evidence to show how soon the defendant would come back within the legal limit, a hotel booking or a receipt for overnight parking.

United Kingdom drunk driving law imposes the following penalties for alcohol related driving offenses:

Being in charge of a vehicle while intoxicated and over the legal blood/alcohol limit, without actually driving, can result in a license disqualification, up to 3 months in prison and a maximum fine of £2500.

Driving or attempting to drive whilst over the legal blood/alcohol limit almost always results in a minimum 12-month driving ban, a fine of up to £5,000 and up to 6 months in prison for serious or aggravated offences. In almost all cases, there is rarely anything a lawyer can do to prevent a disqualification from driving. There are very few opportunities for a drink driving solicitor to mount a successful "technical defence".

Refusing to supply police with a breath, urine or blood specimen when properly requested can result in a similar penalty.

Under current drunk driving law the police have the legal right to request a breath sample for analysis from anyone who is driving under any circumstances. They also have the power to require a breath test if you are attempting to drive or driving in privately owned land which is accessible by the public. Currently, 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath is the prescribed alcohol limit which is equivalent to 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath. The request for a breath specimen must come from a uniformed officer with one of the following three conditions being satisfied:-