Long Island, Manhattan Accident Attorney Blog

What If a Device Could Stop Drunk Driving Accidents?

If there was such thing as a device that could stop drunk driving accidents, would you support it? Would you want one in your car?

A little over a thousand people were polled in a recent Insurance Institute for Highway Safety survey to find out their opinions on alcohol detection devices.  Researchers were surprised to find out that about 2 of 3 respondents felt that alcohol detection devices were a good idea.  What was also interesting is that almost 40 percent stated that they would want one of these devices in their vehicles.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety did not expect to get such strong support for the concept of detecting alcohol in everybody.  Anne McCartt, the senior vice president for the Institute said that the survey shows that people are ready to “crack down on all impaired drivers, not just those who’ve had DWI convictions.”

The technology for this device is not yet available, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, along with the Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety, is looking into it as a future possibility.  There are some obstacles that will need to be overcome for these devices. For example, it will need to be suitable for all drivers and require little maintenance.  The device will need to have the capability to stop drivers from operating their vehicles when they have registered BACs of 0.08 percent or above.