Alcohol & Auto Accidents

Everyday a staggering number of auto accidents and losses are being caused in part due to the consumption and abuse of alcohol. This page reviews some of the statistics of how big of a problem we all face with alcohol in this country and driving and auto accidents and other losses.

If you or a family member need legal advice on an auto accident, the damages or injuries caused by an accident, the causes, liability issues or insurance questions - call our Law Firm, we can help. Call 800-862-1260.

1. On weeknights, 41% of those who died in single-vehicle car crashes, the drivers' had a BAC level of .08 g/dl or higher. On weekends 60% of those killed in single-vehicle crashes had BAC levels of .08 g/dl or higher. Driving and drinking is extremely dangerous and deadly.
2. The speed of alcohol absorption affects the rate at which one becomes drunk. Unlike foods, alcohol does not have to be slowly digested. As a person drinks faster than the alcohol can be eliminated, the drug accumulates in the body, resulting in higher and higher levels of alcohol in the blood.
3. The rate of alcohol involvement in fatal crashes is more than 3 times as high at night as during the day (60 percent vs. 18 percent). For all crashes, the alcohol involvement rate is 5 times as high at night (16 percent vs. 3 percent).
4. The average person metabolizes alcohol at the rate of about one drink per hour. Only time will sober a person up. Drinking strong coffee, exercising or taking a cold shower will not help. Sleeping it off - is the only thing that works.
5. Impairment is not determined by the type of drink, but rather by the amount of alcohol ingested over a specific period of time.
6. The impact of alcohol involvement increases with injury severity. Alcohol-involved crashes accounted for 10 percent of property damage only crash costs, 21 percent of non-fatal injury crashes; and 46 percent of fatal injury crash costs.
7. Alcohol-related fatalities are caused primarily by the consumption of beer (80 percent) followed by liquor/wine at 20 percent.
8. Beer is the drink most commonly consumed by people stopped for alcohol-impaired driving or involved in alcohol-related crashes.
9. Alcohol is society's legal, oldest and most popular drug.
10. Alcohol is closely linked with violence. About 40 percent of all crimes (violent and non-violent) are committed under the influence of alcohol.
11. Beer is the drink of choice in most cases where of heavy drinking, binge drinking, drunk driving and underage drinking. (Rogers and Greenfield, 1999)
12. There is evidence that heavier drinkers prefer to drink at bars and other person's homes, and at multiple locations requiring longer driver distances. Young drivers have been found to prefer drinking at private parties, while older, individuals prefer bars and taverns.
13. In 2004, 51 percent of all fatal crashes during the weekend were alcohol-related. For all crashes, fatal and non-fatal, the alcohol involvement rate was 5 percent during the week and 12 percent during the weekend.
14. On fatal crashes occurring from midnight to 3:00 AM, 77 percent involved alcohol in 2003. The next most dangerous time period for alcohol-related crash deaths were 9 PM to midnight (64 percent of fatal crashes involved alcohol), followed by 3 AM to 6 AM (60 percent of fatal crashes involved alcohol).
15. A standard drink is defined as 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of 72-proof distilled spirits, all of which contain the same amount of alcohol -- about .54 ounce
16. About three in every ten Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related crash at some time in their lives.

Everyday a staggering number of auto accidents are being caused in part due to the consumption of alcohol. This page reviews some of the statistics of how big of a problem we all face with alcohol in this country and driving and auto accidents. If you or a family member need legal advice on an auto accident, the damages or injuries caused by an accident or the causes or liability issues or insurance questions - contact our Law Firm, we can help. Call 800-862-1260.