Even if you don’t think you’re drunk, drinking even small amounts of alcohol can seriously affect the way you drive. This is because alcohol can affect your reactions, your reflexes and your spatial ability – all of which are essential for safe driving.
Why you shouldn't drink and drive
Even if you don’t think you’re drunk, drinking even small amounts of alcohol can seriously affect the way you drive. This is because alcohol can affect your reactions, your reflexes and your spatial ability – all of which are essential for safe driving.
Even though it’s illegal, drunk driving in South Africa is a huge problem, with around half of all road accidents being caused by drivers under the influence of alcohol. The problem is due to a combination of factors, including a lack of public transport, ineffective policing and driving after drinking being socially acceptable.
The legal implications of drunk driving
In South Africa, the legal blood limit for alcohol is 0.05 grams per 100 millilitres, while the breath alcohol limit is 0.24 milligrams per 1000 millilitres. It is illegal to refuse a blood test or breathalyser.
If you’re convicted of drunk driving, you’ll usually be given a fine and may lose your license for a certain period. If you’re a repeat offender, you could be fined larger amounts and face losing your license permanently.
How drinking affects you
Alcohol is a depressant drug that affects most areas of the brain. Research shows that after only three drinks, your reaction time while driving is impaired by between two and four times. This can result in one or more of the following:
- Tunnel vision. This means you don’t notice things on the left or right.
- Taking longer to focus. This is because the pupils of your eyes react more slowly to sudden changes of light, which can leave you blinded by oncoming headlights.
- An increase in night blindness. This can make it harder to see objects on the road, such as pedestrians, passengers or poorly lit cars.
With these physical changes to the body, it’s clear that driving a car under these circumstances is very unwise.
How drinking and driving affects your car insurance
If you’re involved in an accident while under the influence of alcohol, this can seriously affect your car insurance policy in one or more of the following ways:
- You won’t be able to claim. Your car insurance company has the right to refuse to pay out any claim you make if you are found guilty of drunk driving. Because you’ve committed an illegal act by driving under the influence, the car insurance company has no obligation to meet your claim. The same can be said for the Road Accident Fund, which can also refuse to pay out claims for a drunken driving accident.
- You can’t get insured again. If you’re convicted of drunk driving, your insurance company could decide that you are a high-risk individual, and so they may refuse to continue your car insurance cover. Should your driver's license be suspended, you won’t be able to get car insurance anywhere.
- Your premiums go up. If your insurance company does decide to pay out your claim, it’s likely that your car monthly insurance premium – the amount you pay your insurance company each month - will increase fairly significantly. This is because you’re now considered a high-risk driver.
A safe and well-run public transport system would solve a large part of the drinking and driving problem in South Africa. Until this happens, make sure that you use a lift service such as Goodfellas or Road Trip, where your car is driven home for you. Alternatively, make sure someone in your party is nominated as a designated sober driver.
If you’re looking for car insurance, Hollard provides affordable and flexible solutions to make sure your car is adequately covered in the event of an accident or theft. Interested? Apply online for a quote now.
Hollard Life Assurance Company (Reg. No. 1993/001405/06) is an authorised Financial Services Provider.
