The drink-drive limit could be reduced and older drivers required to take mandatory eye tests as the Government looks to cut the number of road deaths.
In a major overhaul of the UK’s road safety laws, ministers are also considering tougher penalties for uninsured drivers and those who fail to wear a seatbelt, according to The Times.
The proposals, set to be published as part of a road safety strategy in the autumn, come amid concern about the number of fatalities or serious injuries on UK roads.
Last year, 1,633 people were killed and almost 28,000 seriously injured in traffic incidents, and numbers have remained relatively constant following a large fall between 2000 and 2010.
Motoring groups have hailed the plans as “much overdue” and “a step in the right direction”.
The i Paper examines the potential changes for drivers under the plans.
According to the report, the drink-drive limit in England and Wales could be cut from 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100ml of breath to 22 micrograms.
This figure would be in line with Scotland, which cut its drink-drive limit in 2014, and the rest of Europe, where no other country has a limit as high as that in England and Wales.
People react to alcohol in different ways depending on their weight, age, metabolism and what they have eaten that day, and this lower threshold may mean that just one drink puts someone over the limit.
The Government is also reportedly going to look to make it easier for police to bring a prosecution against someone found to be drug-driving. It will do this by allowing forces to rely on roadside saliva tests for evidence, instead of blood tests.
It comes amid a 78 per cent increase in the number of drivers killed in the past 10 years who had drugs in their system.
RAC head of policy Simon Williams said “more clearly needs to be done” to tackle drink-driving, adding that: “Data for Scotland suggests merely reducing the legal drink-drive limit isn’t enough.
“A significant number of drink-drive offences are committed by reoffenders, so tackling the risk associated with habitual drink-drivers is crucial.”
Being caught drink driving in the UK carries serious penalties. A conviction can carry an up to six-month jail sentence, an unlimited fine and a driving ban of at least one year.
The punishment’s severity depends on the amount of alcohol in the driver’s system and whether or not there were other aggravating factors, such a causing a collision.
Anyone convicted of drug driving may get a minimum of one year driving ban, an unlimited fine, up to six months in prison, and a criminal record.
According to the Government website, a conviction for drug driving also means: “your car insurance costs will increase significantly if you drive for work, your employer will see your conviction on your licence, and you may have trouble travelling to countries like the USA”.
Ministers are considering cutting the drink-drive limit in England and Wales and introducing mandatory eye tests for older drivers (Photo: PA)Mandatory eye tests for older drivers
Drivers over the age of 70 would be banned from the roads if they fail compulsory eye tests taken every three years, when they renew their licence, according to the report.
The UK is currently one of only three countries in Europe that rely on self-reporting of visual conditions that may impact motorists’ ability to drive.
The number of drivers over 60 involved in crashes where someone is killed or seriously injured on UK roads has risen by 47 per cent since 2010.
Proposals under consideration also include a potential medical test for conditions which could make driving more dangerous, such as dementia.
Anyone caught driving after a failed eye test would be doing so illegally and could therefore face criminal proceedings.
The Government is reportedly considering increasing the penalty for driving without insurance.
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Currently, people driving a vehicle without insurance risk a fixed penalty of £300 and six points on their licence – figures which would likely be raised under the new proposals. If the case goes to court, there is a possibility of an unlimited fine and disqualification.
There may also be a strengthening of measures against “ghost plates”, which cannot be read by automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras.
As a vehicle passes an ANPR camera, it is automatically scanned and checked against a database of other vehicles of interest to help identify those without insurance or licences.
Harsher punishment for failing to wear a seatbelt
Ministers are thought to be looking at tougher penalties for those who do not wear a seatbelt.
Currently, people can be fined up to £500 for not wearing a seatbelt. Passengers who have a driving licence and are not wearing a seatbelt could get two points. These figures would increase under the new plans.
Growing numbers of deaths have prompted the Government to take action.
The percentage of all those killed in road traffic accidents who were not wearing a seatbelt has risen from 21 per cent in 2014 to 25 per cent in 2023, or 40 per cent for back-seat passengers.
There were 142 non-seatbelt-wearing fatalities in 2020, compared with 181 in 2023 – a 27 per cent increase.
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