The Other Costs of Drinking and Driving

While drunk driving fatalities often make the headlines, there are a host of other costs of driving drunk that arent often mentioned. Watch short interviews with a police officer, a lawyer, and an auto insurance agent. These interviews inform teens on additional costs of drunk driving, such as attorney fees, court costs, increased insurance rates, and suspension or loss of license.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• drinking
• and
• driving
• drivers
• ed
• alcohol
• awareness

[wainber1]

@NS13Guardian: The Brits have a driving offence that incorporates "careless driving" into its name: causing death by careless driving under the influence of drink or drugs. Northern Ireland goes further: causing death, or grievous bodily injury, by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs. There may be no intent of killing or maiming other road users while drunk, but it's careless because the driver shouldn't be driving while impaired.

[wainber1]

British licence holders will have their driver licences endorsed for 11 years after conviction, and have to pay to get a clean licence after 11 years have passed since the last DUI. The police officer remarks a DUI can affect the ability to get a job. For professional drivers, it may mean becoming self-employed, if they're allowed to become vocational driving licence holders again. Similar penalties should apply to American licence holders convicted of a DUI.

[wainber1]

One anti-drunk-driving PSA, from the Singapore Traffic Police, has a message: "Drink driving shatters lives. Get the picture?" Unfortunately, many people don't get the picture, until they get caught. The police officer in the video remarks there are stiff penalties for impaired driving causing death. There sure are in Britain proper, including: a mandatory extended practical car driving test (extends also to maiming for Northern Irish licence holders) and an unlimited fine.

[Leummoht]

if you want to drink, then don't drive... just as simple as that!

[strongfp]

@NS13Guardian I full understand this. The point I am trying to get accross is they need to educate the public more on the laws. When people get behind the wheel while impaired they think they won't get caught, and they have no idea what would happen if they do get caught. Instead they just try to drive slower, and straight, not thinking that if they get caught it will just be a slap on the wrist.

[NS13Guardian]

@strongfp Continued 4 ->

Again, drinking while impaired is a choice, and thus any ‘accidents’ caused by a such a poor choice, are not accidents at all, but the direct effects of purposely making a bad decision. Even if someone somehow did not know drinking while impaired is illegal, they had to have known it was dangerous, not only to themselves, but anyone they encountered.

[NS13Guardian]

@strongfp Continued 3 ->

It is very easy, and happens frequently, that a drunk driver will end up striking and killing another road user or pedestrian. They are of course, endangering themselves too.

Even if no-one is killed, causing an injury to another, let alone merely endangering others, is unacceptable. This goes for property damage as well, as not all collisions with drunk drivers involve sticking other people.

[NS13Guardian]

@strongfp Continued 2 ->

Besides, all of the consequences listed within this video, are all rather minor when considered with what the true implications of driving impaired are. Drunk drivers (whether repeat offenders or not, and of any age) endanger not only themselves, but everyone else on the roads, and the immediate area, which by that I mean sidewalks and yards and so forth.

[NS13Guardian]

@strongfp I don’t understand your logic at all. About the only thing I do agree with in your posts, is the need for more information to be made available about the various laws out there. That said, I still do not agree that ignorance is a valid defense.

[strongfp]

@NS13Guardian There are so many laws and quircks in the system that no random civilian can remember it all. If they educated people in what will happen if caught then I can garuntee drunk driving rates will go down, instead they make shock videos that make people laugh rather than scared. If I were to go to a bar and ask everyone there what would happen if they blew over in a Ride stop, they wouldn't know half the suff that would happen to them. Most (as I said) think it will be nothing.