What are the repercussions of a drink or drug driving conviction?

The Ripple Effect: Drink & Drug Driving

What really happens if you get caught drink or drug driving?

Most drivers are aware that convictions for drink driving or drug driving result in immediate disqualification from driving, coupled with anything from a fine, through to a community order and possibly a custodial sentence., however, lesser known, but equally impactful effects are often overlooked.

Arrest and detention in custody:

Being arrested, has a far greater impact for many individuals than people imagine.  Most people are completely shocked by general police procedures when they are suspected of drink or drug driving.

The most likely scenario when a person is found to be driving whilst over the limit, is that they will be arrested at the roadside, handcuffed, placed into the back of a police vehicle, often a caged van, and transported to a police station.   Procedurally, the police use handcuffs, following an arrest, to protect themselves or to prevent harm.

Where a driver has been injured or airbags have been deployed following a road traffic collision, and there is reasonable suspicion that they have been driving, the driver will be taken to a nearby hospital in handcuffs to be checked and for an evidential specimen of blood to be obtained from them for forensic analysis.  If they are deemed fit by the doctor in charge, blood will be taken despite most protestations.  If blood cannot be donated, urine samples will be obtained in the alternative.

A person can be detained for hours without being able to inform a relative or friend of their arrest.  When being processed at a police station for example, the driver may not be allowed to use the toilet or to get any advice at all until after they have been booked into police custody, searched, and had their property removed.  Evidential procedures are not delayed until after the provision of legal advice.

Most detainees are kept in police custody overnight, or until they are deemed fit for release.  If there are a limited number of police staff and perhaps a shift change, it is not unusual for a detainee to remain in a cell for 12 hours or more.  It can also be the case that an individual is kept in the police cells overnight to appear at a local magistrates’ court the following morning.  Where this happens, they will be transported, handcuffed, in the back of a van from the police station to the court cells, awaiting their turn to be called up before a bench of magistrates or a district judge.  The usual waiting time in the court cells is around 4 hours.

Most people have no idea what to expect when they are arrested or appear at court for drink or drug driving, and we hear daily how traumatised people have been by the experience.  They feel embarrassed, ashamed, angry, frightened, overwhelmed and in some cases utterly devastated by the consequences of having committed an offence or being the subject of prosecution.

It is important to note that not everyone charged with an alcohol or drug-related offence is automatically guilty.  If that were the case, there would be no drink or drug driving trials.  There are well-thumbed precedents where the judiciary has found in favour of a defendant for very good reason.

Still, the effect of a prosecution, even where the plea entered is one of not guilty, can e.g. invalidate an insurance policy and make it nigh on impossible to secure motor insurance, especially for new drivers, or make premiums so high that driving becomes unaffordable.

The ongoing financial burden of a drink or drug driving conviction is one that most clients never consider.  Jobs, homes, and businesses are lost, and relationships suffer as a result.

Unlimited fines are now available to the courts when sentencing for drink and drug driving.  Although means tested, fines can be in the £1000s, stretching household budgets to capacity.

Loss of employment or impact upon future employment:

In excess of one million people throughout England and Wales work in jobs that could be lost as a result of a drink or drug driving conviction.  Add to those people who are only able to get to their place of employment by driving themselves and the statistic increases significantly.

Loss of employment is an often-overlooked result of a drink or drug driving conviction.   The impact does not only apply to those who are contractually obliged to drive, but also those who are subject, to DBS checks and other forms of screening by their employer.  The recruitment process can be stringent, and it is widely reported that those who do not have any offending history are far more likely to be chosen for a position over those who have previous and unspent criminal convictions.

Whilst drink and drug driving convictions at the lower end of the scale will be spent after 5 years (so no longer disclosable), convictions at the other end of the spectrum, following the 2020 amendments to the 1974 Rehabilitation of Offenders Act, convictions for causing death or serious injury whilst drink or drug driving will never be filtered from a DBS check, so the impact upon DBS checked employment will be lifelong.

Travelling overseas

Whilst a single drink drive conviction does not usually prohibit someone from travelling to e.g. the US, the more convictions there are and the more recent the conviction, the higher the likelihood of being denied access is.

The requirements are far stricter however for controlled substances.  To highlight the seriousness apportioned to drug driving violations, they are given a class of their own and the ability to  is far enter the US is far more restricted.  Anyone who has been convicted of or admits to a violation relating to a controlled substance, either in the US or in any foreign country, will not be granted access to the US unless a waiver is granted.

The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act does not apply to US visa law, meaning that spent convictions, regardless of when they occurred will have a bearing on a traveller’s eligibility for admission into the United States.  Also, it is important for UK applicants to know that a caution is treated as a conviction under US immigration law. 

In general, all convictions must be disclosed in an individual’s visa application regardless of how long ago the offense occurred or whether it is spent in accordance with UK Law.

British Citizenship Applications

Whilst we have discussed the far-reaching impact of drink and drug driving convictions upon British citizens, there are further complications for those hoping to secure British Citizenship, having committed even the most minor road traffic offences.

In relation to drink driving, guidance dictates that drink driving offences must be declared on every British Citizenship application, and that a driving conviction may not be disregarded even after the expiry date of endorsements.

An applicant must give details of all criminal convictions both inside and outside the UK, including road traffic offences. Even fixed penalty notices, including parking tickets, must be disclosed.  That said, where the offences are minor and there have not been repeated incidents, such matters can generally be explained and the application will largely succeed, however repeat offending is generally not accepted.

Section 41 of The British Nationality Act 1981 provides British Citizenship must not be granted unless the Secretary of State is satisfied that the adult or young person is of good character.  Criminality is listed as a factor that can result in an application being unsuccessful.

Arrests for drink and drug driving increase significantly in November and December.  The ripple effect of convictions can last a lifetime.