7 Frightening DUI Facts
Halloween is almost upon us. In that spirit, we’d like to relate a few facts that are more than a little scary.
We have MADD. We have SADD. We have catchy slogans and ad campaigns that were so successful nearly everyone has seen them. We even have affordable devices that help us keep aware of how alcohol affects us. Yet we still have countless drunk drivers on the roads.
This is startling, not only because of the avalanche of evidence that is at this point commonplace, but also because preventing these tragedies is as simple as raising awareness of one's alcohol intake. Perhaps no instrument does this as quickly and effectively as a breathalyzer. By using one, an untold number of lives could be saved.
Here are a few very alarming facts about drunk driving. Let’s keep these in mind during Halloween, which continues to be a deadly time of year.
- Car crashes are the number one killer of people in their teens. To put that in a more stark light, one third of all auto fatalities involving teens are alcohol-related.
- Eight teens die every day in DUI crashes. Inexperience and youthfulness leads to bad decision making.
- Teen fatalities make up one-fifth of all alcohol-related crashes, though licensed teens make up only about 6% of the overall licensed population.
- Alcohol is involved in about 40% of all fatal car crashes.
- Alcohol is the number one choice of drug over all other drugs.
- Males are almost twice as likely as females to drive under the influence of alcohol.
- Among auto crashes occurring at night, 50% of drivers killed had blood alcohol content (BAC) levels over the legal limit (0.08%) compared with 15% of drivers killed during other hours.
Amidst the gloom, a silver lining: drunk driving is 100% preventable. As a result of coordinated efforts by anti-drunk driving organizations and others, public awareness of the dire consequences of drunk driving has increased while alcohol-related crashes have steadily decreased. Teen drinking and driving is also on the decline.
There is never a reason to get behind the wheel if you are drunk. Use a BACtrack Breathalyzer and stay informed of your BAC.
Shop for a BACtrack now.