Drink-driving in New Zealand
Autumn Issue: March 2009
Should New Zealand lower the drink-driving limit? We take a look at the complex alcohol issue.
New Zealand's drink-driving limit is 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood - the same as Britain and the United States. But Australia, Japan and most of Europe use a 50mg/100ml limit. Should we adopt a 50mg - sometimes referred to as 0.5 - limit, too? A lot of experts think 0.5 would be a step in the right direction. And it's not just academics. The late racing legend Peter Brock always drove the '05' car in support of a reduced limit.
What does a 0.5 limit mean?
Unless you are very small a 0.5 limit would still allow an average driver to consume one or two standard drinks before driving. A survey conducted by the AA in 2006 found Members were unhappy with the idea of a legal limit allowing more. So reducing the limit should be a 'no brainer' but there is more to it than first appears.
Unfortunately a reduced limit doesn't mean a reduced crash rate. The United States with an 80 limit has one of the highest crash rates in the developed world, but Britain, also with an 80 limit, has one of the lowest. The proportion of road fatalities with alcohol as a contributing factor in New Zealand is 27%, but, despite a 50 BAC and lower overall crash rates, Australia's is 31%.
Ultimately a limit is only as good as the perception that it will be enforced.
Italy has a 50 BAC but it is not policed much. Studies in Canada, Austria, and Denmark found reducing the limit had a temporary effect on drink-driving rates. But over time, unless there is change to the drinking environment, those who ignored the old limit start to ignore the new one too.
One of the key problems with drink-driving is young people. Young people start with a high relative crash risk, which is why the drink-driving limit in New Zealand is 30mg/100 ml for those under 20. Despite this, almost a quarter of the 31,000 people prosecuted for drink driving last year were under 20. Without a change in the drinking environment a lower limit just means more prosecutions.
Some American researchers believe New Zealand was wrong to lower the drinking age.
In the United States the drinking age is 21. The Federal Highways Authority estimates this saves roughly 1,000 young American lives each year. In New Zealand student drinking is at an all-time high; in America an all-time low.
Another problem is heavy drinkers. This group is about 17.5% of the adult population. Police say 80% of drink-driving convictions are new offenders. But studies on drivers killed in crashes found a quarter had previous alcohol related convictions. This suggests there is a hard-core of drunk drivers who can't be relied on to be responsible no matter what the limit might be.
At the moment Police alcohol checkpoints catch between five and nine drink drivers for every thousand vehicles they stop.
If Police wanted a lower limit to improve their hit rate, it is unlikely that it would achieve much. Road Policing national manager Superintendant Paula Rose says it's not about generating more revenue or issuing more tickets. She says she would be happy to see the penalty for drink-driving in the 50mg to 80mg band expressed in demerit points, and recovery programmes for habitual offenders. Police are also trialling alcolocks (a breath alcohol detector linked to an immobiliser) for habitual offenders. But in the end she says it's about saving lives. And that is definitely an objective worth thinking about.
Read feedback on the NZ drink-driving issue here >>