The £50,000 pint: campaigners calculate drink drive cost
How much does a pint set you back? A couple of quid? £3? £4? Try £50,000.
That’s how much the drink which puts you over the limit could cost you in fines, legal costs and lost earnings.
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The drink which puts you over the limit could cost you £50,000, researchers found
Researchers have for the first time calculated the personal financial cost of drink driving, pricing it between £20,000 and £50,000.
Road Safety Minister Stephen Hammond said: “It might only look like a humble pint of beer, but it could end up costing much more than a few quid – in fact it comes with an eye-watering hidden cost if it pushes you over the limit.
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“Most people know not to drink and drive but a small number still do, which is why we are highlighting the consequences of a drink drive conviction through our THINK! campaign.
“Anyone thinking of drinking and driving should be without any doubt – if you are caught driving over the limit you will face a heavy court fine and lose your licence – you could even go to prison.”
The research was carried out by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM). Researchers totted up the maximum fine for drink driving at £5,000; £4,800 for the average legal bill for a not-guilty plea; an £8,000 increase in insurance premiums for the 11 years a drink-drive conviction remains on a driving licence; and £33,000 in lost earnings over 15 months - the average length of a driving disqualification after conviction.
IAM Chief executive Simon Best said: “The total personal cost of a drink driving conviction was a lot more than we expected - £50,000 is an awful lot to pay for just one more drink.
“On top of the up-front financial costs, the long-term impact on earnings can be serious if you factor in the stigma of a criminal record.
“Alcohol affects everyone differently and your limit can change depending on a large number of factors - it’s best to make it none for the road.”
The ‘£50,000 pint’ is part of the latest THINK! campaign to crack down on drink-driving.
Television and radio adverts will be rolled out over the coming months, and THINK! will take its campaign online.
More than 51,000 people were convicted of drink or drug driving in 2011. That year, 280 people died due to drink driving.
Some 15 per cent of road fatalities in 2010 were caused by drink driving.
Watch the THINK! drink drive TV advert aired in 2010:
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