Reported road casualties in Great Britain: Estimates for accidents involving illegal alcohol levels: 2012 (provisional) and 2011 (final)

These are provisional statistics on accidents reported to the police involving drinking and driving in Great Britain in 2012. The figures also include final estimates for 2011, revised from last year’s publication as more data are now available.

More detailed statistics on drink driving accidents and casualties will be available in Reported Road Casualties Great Britain – Annual Report, due for publication on 26 September 2013.

Key points
• Provisional estimates for 2012 show that there 290 people were killed in drink drive accidents in Great Britain (17% of all reported road fatalities), an increase of around a quarter compared with 2011.

• There was a 4% decrease in seriously injured drink drive casualties in 2012, to around 1,200 (5% of all seriously injured road casualties).

• Final estimates for 2011 show that there were 220 fatal drink drive accidents in 2011, resulting in 230 fatalities, the lowest number since detailed reporting began in 1979.

• Amongst those killed in drink drive accidents, the majority (68%) were drivers and riders over the legal alcohol limit. The remaining 32% were other road users, involved in the accident but not necessarily over the legal limit themselves.

• Since 1979, when detailed reporting began, there has been an almost six-fold reduction in the number killed in drink drive accidents and a similar drop in seriously injured casualties.