Legal drinking Limit

corkoian

I'm a 6ft tall 10st male. If i consume 350ml of 4.5% cider am I over the drink driving limit?

Pat Mustard

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/travel_and_recreation/motoring_1/driving_offences/drink_driving_offences_in_ireland.html

For this purpose, alcohol is measured in specimens of blood, urine or breath.

Age, sex and height are not useful for determining whether an offence has been committed or not.

corkoian

The Mustard wrote: »

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/travel_and_recreation/motoring_1/driving_offences/drink_driving_offences_in_ireland.html

For this purpose, alcohol is measured in specimens of blood, urine or breath.

Age, sex and height are not useful for determining whether an offence has been committed or not.

I taught height and sex would come into it when it comes to processing the drink?

MarkAnthony

corkoian wrote: »

I'm a 6ft tall 10st male. If i consume 350ml of 4.5% cider am I over the drink driving limit?

How do you not blow over?

You'd also need to be aware of whether you are on the lower limit in relation to your licence.

Pat Mustard

corkoian wrote: »

I taught height and sex would come into it when it comes to processing the drink?

They are not mentioned in the legislation.

As has already been pointed out to you:

The Mustard wrote: »

Age, sex and height are not useful for determining whether an offence has been committed or not.

coylemj

There is no set formula by which you can predict the alcohol level in your blood. It depends on a number of factors of which the rate at which your body processes and breaks down alcohol is probably the biggest. This varies from person to person and is also affected by when you ate last and what you actually ate.

Your question also fails to recognise that the alcohol level in your blood will rise and then very slowly fall - you didn't mention at what point the measurement would be taken - immediately after the alcohol was consumed or 1, 2 or 3 hours afterwards.

In summary, you asked a question that nobody can answer.

CiniO

Nobody can answer for definite, but realistically looking at it, there's very little chance that 350ml of 4.5% alcohol drink would put 10 stone person above the 50mg/100ml blood limit.

The bigger and heavier the person, then less blood alcohol concentration will the same amount of alcohol drank cause.

NUTLEY BOY

corkoian wrote: »

I'm a 6ft tall 10st male. If i consume 350ml of 4.5% cider am I over the drink driving limit?

This type of calculation is usually quite useless because of individual variability.

The best calculation of all is that you consume ZERO alcohol if intending to drive.

FreudianSlippers

In reality you should not drive if you have consumed any alcohol, as the legislation provides for:

An offence of driving or attempting to drive a mechanically propelled vehicle in a public place while under the influence of an intoxicant to such an extent as to be incapable of having proper control of the vehicle.

The "limits" really just allow for easier prosecution.

coylemj

FreudianSlippers wrote: »

In reality you should not drive if you have consumed any alcohol, as the legislation provides for:

No it doesn't, read the quote you posted. You need to have consumed such an amount as renders you 'incapable of having proper control of the vehicle' to be committing an offence.

Now it may be your personal opinion that any amount of alcohol or intoxicant has this effect but this is a legal forum and the law does not contain a blanket ban on driving with alcohol on you as your posts suggests.

BTW, I never drink and drive so am not suggesting there is a 'safe' level, lest anyone try throwing that one back at me.

MarkAnthony

FreudianSlippers wrote: »

In reality you should not drive if you have consumed any alcohol, as the legislation provides for:


The "limits" really just allow for easier prosecution.

coylemj wrote: »

No it doesn't, read the quote you posted. You need to have consumed such an amount as renders you 'incapable of having proper control of the vehicle' to be committing an offence.

Now it may be your personal opinion that any amount of alcohol or intoxicant has this effect but this is a legal forum and the law does not contain a blanket ban on driving with alcohol on you as your posts suggests.

BTW, I never drink and drive so am not suggesting there is a 'safe' level, lest anyone try throwing that one back at me.

That's really two sides of the same coin. My mother-in-law would be unfit to drive after a small sherry before dinner and well, well under the legal limit.

Beano

coylemj wrote: »

No it doesn't, read the quote you posted. You need to have consumed such an amount as renders you 'incapable of having proper control of the vehicle' to be committing an offence.

Now it may be your personal opinion that any amount of alcohol or intoxicant has this effect but this is a legal forum and the law does not contain a blanket ban on driving with alcohol on you as your posts suggests.

BTW, I never drink and drive so am not suggesting there is a 'safe' level, lest anyone try throwing that one back at me.

Are there not 4 separate offenses of which having improper control is just one? The other 3 refer to particular levels of alcohol in your blood and do not require the driver to be incapable of having proper control of the vehicle.

FreudianSlippers

coylemj wrote: »

No it doesn't, read the quote you posted. You need to have consumed such an amount as renders you 'incapable of having proper control of the vehicle' to be committing an offence.

Now it may be your personal opinion that any amount of alcohol or intoxicant has this effect but this is a legal forum and the law does not contain a blanket ban on driving with alcohol on you as your posts suggests.

BTW, I never drink and drive so am not suggesting there is a 'safe' level, lest anyone try throwing that one back at me.

That's the point; it's entirely subjective to the Garda at the time. Impairment could be anything. Years of scientific data on the subject have shown that zero alcohol is the only level at which you are not impaired.

Peregrinus

But "impaired" does not equal "incapable of having proper control".

source

Peregrinus wrote: »

But "impaired" does not equal "incapable of having proper control".

But you can't legislate for everyone, so you provide a legal middle ground, and advise people that everyone is different and the safest option is not to drink if you're driving.