HOW TO AVOID GETTING PULLED OVER FOR A DUI

Driving drunk is a serious crime that can result is serious injury, job loss, driver’s license suspension, and ultimately conviction. So, as long as you drink responsibly, you’re safe, right?

The unfortunate reality is that you can be arrested and convicted of drunk driving even if you drive sober. If you have even a drop of alcohol in your body when pulled over, you may be arrested and tried in court. You may also be held responsible for a collision even if it’s not your fault.

The legal limit for blood alcohol content (BAC) is 0.08 percent. As few as two drinks can put a person of average height and weight over this threshold and at risk of a drunken driving citation. Even if you pass the BAC test, an officer can still claim you were impaired. The court only requires documentation proving your BAC was detectable by the machine.

Reduce the Likelihood of Being Pulled Over

Avoiding a DUI charge is simple: don’t consume any alcohol before you take the wheel. That means no beer at the company party, no wine at the family dinner, and no shots at the bar with your friends. However, alcoholic beverages are a common component of social gatherings, and most people won’t hesitate to take a few sips. If you decide to consume any alcohol before going on the road (which we highly discourage), you can decrease the likelihood of being pulled over by following the following common sense steps:

Obey all traffic laws. Wear your seat belt at all times, avoid speeding, always signal before turning, and don’t run red lights or stop signs
Inspect your vehicle regularly for properly functioning lights and signals. Keep your vehicle registration and inspection stickers up to date.

You Know What They Say: Knowledge is Power

As we stated previously, we strongly discourage one operate any sort of motorized vehicle under the influence of alcohol. Reason being is because at the end of the day, you’re taking a gamble when you sit behind the wheel of a vehicle after having consumed alcohol. You’re not just gambling on the chance of being pulled over and having to face the repercussions of driving under the influence, but you’re putting yourself and others at risk for potentially fatal injuries, should you unintentionally cause an accident.

Some people have the mentality that they can have a few beers and still function perfectly fine. Others might find themselves in a situation where they have to drive somewhere after having consumed alcohol, and need guidance on how long to wait for the alcohol to get out of their system. There is no method for determining your exact blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level, as there are many different factors that can cause this to vary (e.g. sex, age, body weight and height, medications you might be taking, how much sleep you’ve had, and the alcohol level of the drink/s you’ve consumed, to name a few).

But you can use a BAC chart to help you approximate your BAC level, so as to help you gauge whether or not you are within a safe driving limit. Below are two charts to help you to manually calculate your estimated BAC level.

BAC chart for men

BAC chart for women

And for those of us who aren’t as adept in mathematics, there are a few other options for you:

• Use this web-based BAC Calculator
• Download IntelliDrink, a paid BAC calculator app for iOS
• Download AlcoDroid Alcohol Tracker, a BAC calculator app for android
  Disclaimer: Please note that the charts and apps listed above, and the information on this website, is published in good faith and for general information purpose only. 2nd Chance Insurance.com does not make any warranties about the completeness, reliability and accuracy of this information. Any action you take upon the information you find on this website (www.2ndChanceinsurance.com), is strictly at your own risk. 2nd Chance Insurance will not be liable for any losses and/or damages in connection with the use of our website.
  
  We want to do our part in helping to discourage drinking and driving, so we’re going to provide you with some useful information, which we hope will help deter future occurrences. Lycoming College published a web page on Preventing Alcohol Abuse. They outline within it the average percentage of alcohol that can be found in various types of alcoholic drinks, as well as the typical range. This is extremely useful to reference, as not all beers were created equal; some types can be nearly double in strength than others! They also provide a chart on the effects that alcohol has on the body, as well as detailed information on the critical signs of alcohol poisoning.Again, the best advice we can give you is to avoid consuming alcohol completely before operating a vehicle. But should you find yourself in need of an SR22 certificate due to a DUI conviction, 2nd Chance Insurance can help. Call today to receive your free quote on DUI insurance.