Have You Been Charged With Drink or Drug Driving?
If you’ve recently been charged for drinking and driving, drug driving, or driving under the influence (DUI) you need an experienced and knowledgeable lawyer in your corner who is prepared to fight for you and uphold your rights under the law.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Drink and Drug Driving?
In cases of drink driving and drug driving, there are essentially two types of offences with which you can be charged:
- Driving whilst under the influence of alcohol or drugs
- Driving with a prescribed concentration of alcohol or drugs present
Every case is different and your individual circumstances will determine which charges are laid against you.
DUI
A Driving Under the Influence (DUI) charge is made when a person is believed to be operating a motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The person does not necessarily have to have given a positive result on a drug or breathalyser test. Instead, police and prosecutors must prove you were under the influence when driving, whether by assessing your performance on the road or through personal interaction, e.g. bloodshot eyes or slurring speech.
A Prescribed Concentration of Alcohol (PCA) charge is levelled when a person is caught driving with a blood alcohol level above the legally accepted limit. In these cases, it does not matter if the person was visibly under the influence of alcohol.
If charged with either of these offences you should obtain legal advice as soon as possible to determine:
- What impact it will have on your licence if you are found guilty, as there are minimum disqualification periods, depending on your reading
- The likely penalty, which can range from a fine to imprisonment, depending on the circumstances
- Whether you have a defence available to you
- What the cost would be to defend a charge of drink driving
It is particularly important to obtain legal advice if you have prior convictions for drink driving or prior convictions for driving whilst suspended or disqualified. The risk of imprisonment often increases with relevant prior convictions.
What if my case involves ‘legal’ drugs?
A Prescribed Concentration of Alcohol (PCA) charge is levelled when a person is caught driving with a blood alcohol level above the legally accepted limit. In these cases, it does not matter if the person was visibly under the influence of alcohol.
If charged with either of these offences you should obtain legal advice as soon as possible to determine:
- What impact it will have on your licence if you are found guilty, as there are minimum disqualification periods, depending on your reading
- The likely penalty, which can range from a fine to imprisonment, depending on the circumstances
- Whether you have a defence available to you
- What the cost would be to defend a charge of drink driving
It is particularly important to obtain legal advice if you have prior convictions for drink driving or prior convictions for driving whilst suspended or disqualified. The risk of imprisonment often increases with relevant prior convictions.
