
The UK's top drink-driving hotspots have been revealed, based on data from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). Northampton leads the list, with 687 of the town’s 511,000 drivers caught over the limit in 2023. This results in a rate of 13.4 per 10,000 licensed drivers.
Other areas near the M1 also feature prominently: Nottingham ranks third (12.3 per 10,000), while Wakefield is sixth (11.7 per 10,000).
The data, which covers 114 major postal areas across England, Scotland, and Wales, also shows an alarming rise in drink-driving deaths, which hit a 13-year high in 2022. A total of 300 people died in drink-driving incidents that year, with a further 1,610 suffering serious injuries and 4,890 sustaining slight injuries.
John Scruby, a retired traffic cop and trustee of the Campaign Against Drink Driving (CADD), attributes the increase in incidents to the reduction of road policing. He argues that forces should take a more "proactive" approach to traffic enforcement,
Saying, “Rather than just catching speeding drivers out using automatic number plate recognition cameras, an active police presence on the roads would force people to ‘think’ about their driving.”
Scruby also emphasised the importance of better education, particularly around drink-driving limits. “I think a lot comes down to education,” he said. “When I asked young people what they thought the legal limit was, ‘they said it was two pints or a glass of wine,’ which he branded a ‘myth which has persisted since the 60s.’”
The drink-driving limit in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland is 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100ml of breath, while in Scotland it is 22. However, Scruby explains that the amount of alcohol you can consume before reaching this limit varies from person to person. He believes, “You cannot calculate when you’ve reached the drink-drive limit. We advocate scrapping the drink-drive limit, and only having the safe limit which is none at all, zero.”
He further explained the risks: “There’s no risk involved, you're making a conscious decision to drink alcohol and get behind the wheel of a car. You do not have to be stinking drunk to be a drink-driver, but your ability to drive is impaired.”
If you’re caught driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, a DR10 conviction can result in up to 10 penalty points on your license. Scruby warns, “How are you going to get insurance with a DR10 on your licence? What about your job?” A DR10 can even prevent entry to places like the US. He added, “You are more likely to have a crash if you have alcohol in your system, which increases chances of causing death or serious injury to someone else. We see people doing stupid things when you have a drink, one of those stupid things should never be driving.”
Llandudno, a seaside resort in North Wales, has the second-highest drink-driving rate at 13.1 offenders per 10,000 drivers. Despite not being close to major motorways, Llandudno’s catchment area includes North Wales and the island of Anglesey, a key ferry route to Britain from Dublin.
Other areas in the top ten include Sunderland (12.1 per 10,000), Teesside (11.7), and Durham (11.5), all from the North East. The average rate across Great Britain is just under 8.5 per 10,000. On the other hand, Bromley in Greater London has the lowest rate at just 4.5 per 10,000 drivers, followed by Kingston-upon-Thames (4.7) and Central London (slightly over 4.7).
James Ruppert, editor of Free Car Mag, attributes the low rates in the capital to reduced car ownership, particularly among younger people. He noted, “There remains a drinking culture which is not concentrated in cities, hence drink-driving is now a largely regional activity.”