drink driving today

LegacyUser

What am i gonna do im in an awful way. got stopped by the gards today in the car. they said i was over the limit for drinking but i was only drinking a few pints on saturday night. i had my insurence and tax on the car too. paid alot for it last month only.

they said that dosent matter cos i was over the limit. i live 20 miles from work and if they take my lisense i will have to leave my job. i was only driving cos i was goin to visit my mam who is a bit sick this weekend. how long will they take my lisense for. can i get it back if i tell them that i have to work and need the car.

youtheman

I'll be 'up front' and declare that I don't have much sympathy for people who drink and drive.

I'd say that 99% of people who drink and drive fall into one of the following three categories:

a) those who do it repeatedly and get away with it
b) those who do it until they see a blue flashing light and
c) those who do it until they hear a bump in the night, or wake up in hospital.

And the only difference between all three is LUCK. You were (most probably) in category a) and now you are in category b). If I was you I'd take some comfort in the fact that you have not caused a serious or fatal accident (category c).

Moomoo1

how many pints did you drink and how many hours passed before you started driving?

Jo King

options are
1. Get to a solicitor who is involved in drink driving cases and hope there is a technical defence available.

2. Buy a bicycle.

3. Move nearer to work.

Blatter

The minimum ban is 1 year. Seeing as you were drinking the night before, and it's your first offense, I'm sure that's what you will get. Hopefully you will learn a valuable lesson from all this.

With regards to getting to work, can you not cycle the 20 miles twice a day? Lots of people cycle 40+ miles 5/6 days a week. It will benefit your health greatly and you would probably feel much better for doing it. 1 Year without a car is not the end of the world.

Miss Fluff

You need to get a solicitor asap

LegacyUser

Moomoo1 wrote: »

how many pints did you drink and how many hours passed before you started driving?

I had about 10 pints on saturday nite but i went home and slept it off. had a cold shower this morning too and a cup of tea before i started driving. think it was stupid to be driving on a bank holiday weekend. was stupid but tot i would be okay to drive cos i felt okay

VinnyTGM

Guest1234343 wrote: »

What am i gonna do im in an awful way. got stopped by the gards today in the car. they said i was over the limit for drinking but i was only drinking a few pints on saturday night.

It dosen't matter how much you had to drink, you drank you drove.

Guest1234343 wrote: »

i had my insurence and tax on the car too. paid alot for it last month only.

Your insurance would have been null and void if you had crashed while being over the limit. I don't know why you mentioned this anyway.

Guest1234343 wrote: »

i live 20 miles from work and if they take my lisense i will have to leave my job.

Your problem.

Guest1234343 wrote: »

i was only driving cos i was goin to visit my mam who is a bit sick this weekend.

And the price of cabbage has risen by 10 cent, whats either got to do with you being over the limit.

Guest1234343 wrote: »

how long will they take my lisense for. can i get it back if i tell them that i have to work and need the car.

Whatever the judge decides on what length of time to take it.


You drove with drink in your system, now you got caught, tough.
Not trying to be on a highhorse here, I'm just saying you got caught DD, it dosen't matter where you were going, how much you had to drink, or that you have tax on your car. Your grown up, take it and move on.
How much were you over by anyway?

Kimia

Guest1234343 wrote: »

What am i gonna do im in an awful way. got stopped by the gards today in the car. they said i was over the limit for drinking but i was only drinking a few pints on saturday night. i had my insurence and tax on the car too. paid alot for it last month only.

they said that dosent matter cos i was over the limit. i live 20 miles from work and if they take my lisense i will have to leave my job. i was only driving cos i was goin to visit my mam who is a bit sick this weekend. how long will they take my lisense for. can i get it back if i tell them that i have to work and need the car.

Do you not get it? You don't have 'a few pints on a saturday night' and then get into your car and drive. I don't understand how you seem to think this is beyond your intelligence.

And btw you have your insurance and tax? Oh well fair play to you! It's not like they are standard or anything.

My god, OP i'm so angry reading this. You want a pat on the back for having tax and insurance? I hope they do take your license, you don't deserve to drive, you obviously have no sense of responsibility and I am terrified to think that there are people like you on the roads after a 'few pints on a saturday' when there are other normal, conscientious folks, like designated drivers out there.

Seriously, when were you going to stop drinking and driving? When you crash into someone and potential maim or kill them?

And to answer your question, no, they don't give a flying fúck about the fact that you have to drive 20 miles to get into work. Not their problem. If they do take your license, which I hope they do, you probably won't get it back for 5 years. You'll just have to buy a bike, and btw it's illegal to drink and drive that too.

Blatter

Kimia wrote: »

Do you not get it? You don't have 'a few pints on a saturday night' and then get into your car and drive. I don't understand how you seem to think this is beyond your intelligence.

And btw you have your insurance and tax? Oh well fair play to you! It's not like they are standard or anything.

My god, OP i'm so angry reading this. You want a pat on the back for having tax and insurance? I hope they do take your license, you don't deserve to drive, you obviously have no sense of responsibility and I am terrified to think that there are people like you on the roads after a 'few pints on a saturday' when there are other normal, conscientious folks, like designated drivers out there.

Seriously, when were you going to stop drinking and driving? When you crash into someone and potential maim or kill them?

And to answer your question, no, they don't give a flying fúck about the fact that you have to drive 20 miles to get into work. Not their problem. If they do take your license, which I hope they do, you probably won't get it back for 5 years. You'll just have to buy a bike, and btw it's illegal to drink and drive that too.

Not true. If he was only marginally over the limit, which I suspect he was, as he was caught the next day after a few pints the night before and clearly didn't think he was under the influence, then the penalty is one year.

unattendedbag

Hold on OP,
Did they just physically take your licence or did you actually get arrested for Drink Driving and provide a sample back at the station?

If you got arrested and the result id over then its definately going to court. You now need legal advice so see a solicitor and bring him all the paper you were given at the station. Minimum 2 years disqualification if found gulity and personally I hope the judge throws the book at you.

Kimia

SOCCER4LIFE wrote: »

Not true. If he was only marginally over the limit, which I suspect he was, as he was caught the next day after a few pints the night before and clearly didn't think he was under the influence, then the penalty is one year.

The OP posted his OP yesterday (saturday) at 9.30 approx, saying that the guards pulled them over that day (saturday). He/ she then said that he/she only had 'a few pints on saturday night'. This leads me to believe that they were drinking a few pints, then got in the car and drove, and were pulled over on the way home, or a few hours later. Height of stupidity.

Blatter

Kimia wrote: »

The OP posted his OP yesterday (saturday) at 9.30 approx, saying that the guards pulled them over that day (saturday). He/ she then said that he/she only had 'a few pints on saturday night'. This leads me to believe that they were drinking a few pints, then got in the car and drove, and were pulled over on the way home, or a few hours later. Height of stupidity.

The OP posted the post at 21.20 yesterday which is 3 and a half hours ago....



I would agree if he was pulled over on the way home, it would be the height of stupidity. But if the situation is as I think it is, I hold some degree of sympathy as he may not of realized he was drink driving.

Kimia

My apologies! How did I lose a day like that. Fair enough OP, that totally changes the playing field. You're most certainly not driving intentionally under the influence (I believe) if you're driving the day after you only had a few pints. I don't really know what they'll do but I would assume that you as Soccer4life said were only barely over the influence (in that you didn't even realise).

Also as an aside, how freaky is it that you're still over the limit the following day, after only having a few pints. Mad. OP were you hammered the night before or wha?

Blatter

Kimia wrote: »

My apologies! How did I lose a day like that. Fair enough OP, that totally changes the playing field. You're most certainly not driving intentionally under the influence (I believe) if you're driving the day after you only had a few pints. I don't really know what they'll do but I would assume that you as Soccer4life said were only barely over the influence (in that you didn't even realise).

Also as an aside, how freaky is it that you're still over the limit the following day, after only having a few pints. Mad. OP were you hammered the night before or wha?

Maybe you were over the limit?:P Just kidding.

On a more serious note, it is scary that you can be over the limit the next day after a few pints the night before. I don't think there is enough awareness about this at all. Personally, I've often gotten in a car with someone who had a (good) few pints the night before, without thinking twice, because they didn't seem drunk. I'm sure the vast majority have done.

LegacyUser

10 pints is 20 units. Your body metabolizes a unit per hour roughly, so if you started drinking at around 9pm you would have been clear by around 5pm the next evening. Not.hinge to do with sleeping anything off, it's up to your liver.

LegacyUser

they said i was over the limit for drinking but i was only drinking a few pints on saturday night

I had about 10 pints on saturday nite

theres a world of difference between "a few" pints and 10 pints OP

think it was stupid to be driving on a bank holiday weekend

No it was stupid to drive after having 10 pints the night before and thinking that "having a cup of tea" and "a cold shower" was magically going to make the alcohol disappear out of your system.

You're making too many excuses OP and not taking enough responsibility for your actions to be honest.

But to answer your actual question

can i get it back if i tell them that i have to work and need the car.

no. But they will laugh in your face. And rightly so.

LegacyUser

got stopped by the gards today in the car. they said i was over the limit for drinking but i was only drinking a few pints on saturday night.

On a more serious note, it is scary that you can be over the limit the next day after a few pints the night before. I don't think there is enough awareness about this at all.

eh the OP drank 10 pints...about 20 units of alcohol...it takes the body 1hour to process 1 unit of alcohol... so thats roughly 20 hours before you can drive

I'm actually quite disturbed that people don't realise this?

How can someone drink 10 pints and honestly think they're ok to drive the next day... the mind boggles at the stupidity, the roads are a much safer place without people like the OP tbh.

mikemac

I've seen a lot of these cases.

Generally for a standard 1st time offense you'll get a two year ban and then after one year you can apply to get your licence back. Shouldn't be an issue if you stay out of trouble.

Now that isn't legal advice OP, just what's fairly standard and what I think will happen

Dan Chipowski

The OP has admitted to drinking 10 pints.

Since when did 10 pints become a 'few pints' as some on this thread have stated. :eek:

He deserves whatever he gets.

tenchi-fan

hi op. there's no secret. 2 year ban minimum which can be overturned after 1 year. other wise a 3 year ban which can be overturned after 18 months. It's an exact science based on how much you drank. 10 pints sounds like a lot. The bans can be overturned early but not before you serve half the ban.

dory

10 pints would take a long time to leave your system. It's been common for years for people to get caught the day after. If I drank 10 pints I wouldn't drive at all the next day. Sorry, I know that doesn't help you now, but just as a warning for others.

Kimia

duff0beer wrote: »

eh the OP drank 10 pints...about 20 units of alcohol...it takes the body 1hour to process 1 unit of alcohol... so thats roughly 20 hours before you can drive

I'm actually quite disturbed that people don't realise this?

How can someone drink 10 pints and honestly think they're ok to drive the next day... the mind boggles at the stupidity, the roads are a much safer place without people like the OP tbh.

Dan Chipowski wrote: »

The OP has admitted to drinking 10 pints.

Since when did 10 pints become a 'few pints' as some on this thread have stated. :eek:

He deserves whatever he gets.

When I posted it was before the OP's second post showed up, saying that he had 10 pints. I think it's obvious that I was commenting on his OP, where he said a 'few pints'.

dudara

It's as other posters have pointed out. 10 pints is roughly 20 units of alcohol, which will take an average liver approximately 20 hours to metabolise.

So it's quite possible that you were still over the limit when you drove the next day, even if it was unintentional. 10 pints is a fair amount of alcohol and it's definitely going to have effects the next day.

I'd recommend getting a solicitor straight away. If this is a first offence, and if your blood alcohol reading wasn't sky high, then you stand a chance of getting off leniently.

You'll also need to become more aware about alcohol and it's impact on your body. You simply can't sleep off 10 pints.

tenchi-fan

dudara wrote: »

I'd recommend getting a solicitor straight away. If this is a first offence, and if your blood alcohol reading wasn't sky high, then you stand a chance of getting off leniently.

The length of the ban is not at the discretion of the judge, the ban is mandatory and depends on the reading. The only thing the judge can decide is the fine.

If you solicitor spots any flaws in the garda report the case can get struck out.

Mikros

As others have said the minimum length of the ban is not at the discretion of the judge. It is set down in statute. Assuming this is a first offence, the driving ban is as follows for breath samples (different for blood or urine sample):

0-35: under the limit
35-44: 1 year ban
44 -66: 2 year ban
>66: 3 year band

This are the minimum - the judge may increase these.

Only people who have been disqualified for the first time for a period of more than 2 years are allowed to apply to the court to have their disqualification removed and their driving licence restored. And you must wait until half the period has elapsed.

I suggest you find yourself a solicitor and be thankful you were not involved in an accident.

silverharp

on what planet does 10 pints = "a few pints" ????? also dont you need to allow more then a hour or 2 per pint before being safe? I didnt realise tea and cold showers extracted alcohol from your blood

JonathanAnon

Hi OP,

Getting caught drink driving is a lot to do with luck...
i) A friend of my mothers had a row with her husband and chased him up the road in the car one night, guard caught her and let her go...
ii) A local farmer who always had three pints and went home, was tracked outside the local by two members of the traffic corps and arrested..
iii) A young friend of mine (early 20s) was on the road with yellow numberplates, no tax, and he was drunk.. and was let go..
So there's no consistency, but if the traffic corps see you, you're nicked..

As the above poster said, did they bring you to the station, get you to blow in to the lion intoxilyzer in the station, then give you a charge sheet ? They cant charge you with the evidence garnered from the roadside breath test, as it wont hold up in court... You need to give a bit more information for us to be able to help you..

Jo King

tenchi-fan wrote: »

hi op. there's no secret. 2 year ban minimum which can be overturned after 1 year. other wise a 3 year ban which can be overturned after 18 months. It's an exact science based on how much you drank. 10 pints sounds like a lot. The bans can be overturned early but not before you serve half the ban.

Not correct. An application can be made for restoration of the licence after half of the ban has been served but the ban can only be reduced by one third. I.e a three year ban can be reduced to 2 years. The ban must be longer than 2 years for this to apply. So a ban for 2 years means just that.

Arthurdaly

Good enough, only had a few pints? 10 pints? You should be off the road, grow up and show some responsibility! Your mother blah blah , work blah blah, if your so concerned stop drinking your so called few pints!

People like you should be off the road.

Arthurdaly

Actually this is pissing me off..You only had 10 pints? What do you normally drink? Take your keys and alloys and off the road I say!!

dudara

Arthurdaly This thread is not for moralising at the OP - Please stick to offering him constructive advice

dudara

Arthurdaly

Hilarious, constructive advice? The op drank too much and is now facing a ban (which he should), OP if you have an important engagement the next day dont drink so much! Are we looking for some loophole? OP should be punished and move on.

outdoorsygirl

A few technical questions:
1) did you do a breath test on the side of the road?
2) having read the test, did the garda inform you that you were over the limit?
3) did he/she arrest you and take you to the local garda station to do a full blood and breath test?
4) did you do these tests and, if so, what were the results?
5) were you cautioned?

The next procedure is for you to go to a reputable solicitor who specialises in drink driving court cases.
You will receive a summons to appear in court on a specified date
Your solicitor will represent you
Depending on how much over the limit you were will influence the judge in his sentencing.
But being over the limit means you will likely receive a one year driving ban.
It is the court that will order your licence to be endorsed, not the gardai.

May I ask you how many pints you drank last night, and at what time did you drive your car today.
I might have one pint and it will put me way over the limit, that is how my metabolism works
You might have one pint and you will be under the legal drink driving limit.

Stop feeling sorry for yourself. You drove your car less than 24 hours after having a few pints. Shame on you.
I was out Saturday night and had a skinful. I didn't drive at all today.
Why? Because I know I was probably still over the limit until the late afternoon.
Let this be a salutory lesson. Never, ever drink and drive.

dudara

Arthurdaly wrote: »

Hilarious, constructive advice? The op drank too much and is now facing a ban (which he should), OP if you have an important engagement the next day dont drink so much! Are we looking for some loophole? OP should be punished and move on.

Yes - constructive advice. If you can't understand that concept, then please read the charter for this forum.

dudara

lau1247

Yeah OP I agree with the other posters that you should not have D&D. Consult solicitor and hope for a lenient punishment.

Guest1234343 wrote: »

i had my insurence and tax on the car too. paid alot for it last month only.

I think in relation the the tax and insurance that OP stuck in there is highlighting the fact that this is now not recoverable from his point of view if he is banned from driving and that he only got a month use out of a lot of money.

Moomoo1

Guest1234343 wrote: »

I had about 10 pints on saturday nite but i went home and slept it off. had a cold shower this morning too and a cup of tea before i started driving. think it was stupid to be driving on a bank holiday weekend. was stupid but tot i would be okay to drive cos i felt okay

10 pints!

that takes on average 20 hours to clear from your system. No idea what the limit is (I don't drive), but it couldn't have been more than 10-12 hours between you stopping drinking and getting behind the wheel... so chances are you were over the limit.

chances are, they'll go easy on you because this does sound like an honest mistake, but the law dictates that you have to be banned for a certain minimum period.

I was hoping that you had 4-5 pints and for some reason the alcohol takes longer to clear from your system than with most people (in which case you can claim with basis that you didn't know you were over), but with 10 pints it's a lot less rosy for you I am afraid...

tenchi-fan

lau1247 wrote: »

I think in relation the the tax and insurance that OP stuck in there is highlighting the fact that this is now not recoverable from his point of view if he is banned from driving and that he only got a month use out of a lot of money.

The insurance will be recoverable. Not 100% and probably not even 11 months of it, but the op should be entitled to a significant refund.
Regarding tax, when the op sells his car the value of the remaining tax will be reflected in the price.

Loaloaloa

The ban won't be imposed until the court case is finalised which will probably not be until next year. The judge has the power to postpone the start of the ban for up to six months if the person has a valid reason such as needing the car to get to work etc. OP can probably continue to drive for the rest of the term of the insurance. Go to a solicitor for proper informed advice.

tenchi-fan

Loaloaloa wrote: »

The ban won't be imposed until the court case is finalised which will probably not be until next year. The judge has the power to postpone the start of the ban for up to six months if the person has a valid reason such as needing the car to get to work etc. OP can probably continue to drive for the rest of the term of the insurance. Go to a solicitor for proper informed advice.

Nope, drink driving cases are fast-tracked.
if you plead guilty your solicitor can get your penalty on the same day, and the ban can take effect within 2 weeks unless you ask for the start date of the ban to be delayed by up to 6 months.

Jo King

tenchi-fan wrote: »

Nope, drink driving cases are fast-tracked.
if you plead guilty your solicitor can get your penalty on the same day, and the ban can take effect within 2 weeks unless you ask for the start date of the ban to be delayed by up to 6 months.

Drink driving cases are not fast tracked. Anyone pleading guilty of a minor offence can be sentenced on the same day. A ban takes effect after 14 days unless the judge defers it. No competent solicitor would recommend a plea of guilty on the first day. A copy of the garda statements would be sought and examined first in case there is a technical defence available.
I think this story is a wind up however.
A licence is not taken by the guards. The o/p hasn't said whether he got a reading in the station or not. If he didn't, he is waiting a the result of a blood or urine test. Until that comes in he doesn't know if he is guilty or not. If he failed a breath test in the station it is likely he would have been charged on the spot and given a return date for court. He hasn't mentioned this. If he failed a breath test in the station he would have been told the reading and if he wasn't charged on the spot he would be waiting for a summons. It could be months before he gets a summons. He can easily keep this in the court system for a year before he is banned so his tax and insurance are irrelevant to this.

consultech

Guest1234343 wrote: »

I had about 10 pints on saturday nite but i went home and slept it off.

Um, no you didn't?

Not much sympathy here tbh. A friend of mine was hit by a DD, ended up in hospital for 3 months, and wasn't walking again for a further 3. Thank God it wasn't worse.

My objective advice is go to a solicitor ASAP, although on a human level I hope the sitting judge uses your licence for TP and you learn some kind of lesson from this.

Milk & Honey

It is not known how much the o/p weighs or how long he slept for. If he is heavy enough and slept for long enough he may have been under the limit when stopped.
A 17 stone man who drinks 10 pints between 10 Pm and 2 Pm and sleeps until 10 am would be under the limit if driving after that time.

Nevyn

You need legal advice get some a.s.a.p.