British motorists travelling abroad are being cautioned about significantly stricter drink-driving laws in popular European destinations, where even a single alcoholic drink could lead to exceeding the legal limit.
Recent statistics reveal that drivers are also considerably more likely to be subjected to breath tests outside the UK.
Spain, one of the most frequented destinations for British tourists, is preparing to reduce its blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit to 20mg per 100ml of blood (0.2% BAC). This aligns it with countries such as Sweden, Poland, and Norway, and is just one-quarter of the legal limit in England and Wales (0.8% BAC). Under this stricter threshold, a single drink may be enough to place drivers over the legal limit.
Other European nations — including France, Germany, Italy, and Portugal — also enforce lower BAC limits of 0.5%, with some applying even more stringent restrictions for new or inexperienced drivers.
Hunter Abbott, Managing Director of the breathalyser company AlcoSense, highlighted the severity of penalties abroad. “If you’re over the limit, you could face fines exceeding €1000. In France, penalties may reach €4500, alongside a possible prison sentence of up to two years,” he said.
While UK police require reasonable suspicion or an offence to conduct breath tests, most European countries — with the exception of Germany — permit random roadside breath testing. This means British drivers are considerably more likely to be breathalysed when driving overseas.
A Freedom of Information request also revealed that British motorists are increasingly being pursued for traffic offences committed abroad. Since March 2023, Spanish authorities have submitted more than 37,000 requests to the DVLA for UK driver information. These enquiries are part of a bilateral agreement that enables Spain to seek enforcement for offences such as drink-driving, speeding, and traffic light violations, even after the driver has returned to the UK.
French authorities are also actively issuing motoring fines to British drivers, despite the lack of a formal post-Brexit data-sharing agreement. In 2023, nearly 63,000 fines were sent to UK-registered vehicles. According to Abbott, “How this is happening remains unclear.”
In France, a surge in fatal accidents related to alcohol and drugs has led to intensified roadside enforcement. French police are reportedly 20 times more likely to administer breath tests than their UK counterparts. Statistics indicate that 109 out of every 1000 people are tested in France, compared to just 5 per 1000 in Britain. In Spain, the rate is 96 per 1000.
Abbott also warned of the lingering effects of alcohol in the body, cautioning that “many drivers don’t realise that alcohol can stay in the system for several hours. Four large glasses of wine, for instance, could take up to 14 hours to fully leave the system.”
About Carl Millar
Carl Millar is a highly respected and experienced drink driving solicitor who is the principal of Millars Solicitors.
Carl has been a specialist in road traffic law for many years and represents clients from all walks of life and all over the Country. He is well known for the dogged defending of his clients and robust cross examination of police officers and exert witnesses.
With a wealth of expertise in motoring law Carl is well placed to provide advice over the phone and deal with all road traffic matters in a calm and professional way.
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