Drink-drive deaths climb to 10-year high
Provisional estimates suggest the number of drink-drive related deaths in Great Britain rose to a 10-year high in 2019. The figures show between 240 and 320 people were killed in collisions where at least one driver was over the drink-drive limit – leading the DfT to produce a central estimate of 280 deaths.
The provisional estimate for 2019 is higher than 2018 – when there were 240 drink-drive fatalities – although the DfT says the rise is not statistically significant. It is also the highest figure since 2009.
For the first time, the DfT has also published figures for the number of people killed or seriously injured in drink-drive collisions. This is possible due to the availability of severity adjustments for non-fatal injuries, which take into account changes in accident reporting systems.
The central estimate of the number of drink-drive KSIs in 2019 is 2,110 – an increase of 11% from 2018. This is the highest level since 2011.
However, the total number of people killed or injured in drink-drive collisions fell by 9% to a record low – from 8,680 in 2018 to 7,860 in 2019.
