Reality Check...
Knowledge and Perceptions of Canada's Impaired Driving Law
Canadians know the limits, and generally avoid drinking and driving. But many don't know what the penalties are, and few believe they are being applied.
Last June, Parliament enacted a change to the Criminal Code to allow a maximum sentence of life in prison for impaired driving causing death. Yet an Environics poll commissioned by the Canada Safety Council found that 65 per cent of Canadians - 56 per cent of men and 74 per cent of women - think Canada's impaired driving laws are not strict enough.
"We doubt Canadians want the death penalty for impaired driving, " said Canada Safety Council president Emile Therien. "A lot of people don't realize the law is already very strict."
Of those surveyed, 62 per cent knew they could be charged with a criminal offence if their blood alcohol concentration (BAC) exceeds .08. A further 26 per cent thought .05 was the limit. The Canada Safety Council finds it encouraging that 88 per cent know the limit or err on the side of caution.
The Criminal Code sections on impaired driving were recently toughened. If the punishments were increased as a deterrent, reasoned Therien, they will fail unless people know the new penalties.
Only four in 10 correctly believed a first-time impaired driving conviction brings a minimum $600 fine and one year driving prohibition. (That penalty was increased in June 1999, from a $300 fine and three month suspension.) Only two in 10 correctly believed that life in prison is the maximum penalty for impaired driving causing death. (Prior to June 2000, it was 14 years.) Ironically, better educated respondents were less likely to know the penalties than those with lower levels of education.
On top of this, most respondents didn't think our courts make drunk driving charges stick. One in four thought less than 25 per cent of charges result in convictions. Only one in 10 correctly answered that over 75 per cent of charges result in convictions.
Of all criminal charges, impaired driving has the highest conviction rate - 73 per cent nationally in 2002, including guilty pleas and those found guilty after trial.
Over 40 per cent of respondents said they'd been stopped by police in the past year to check for impaired driving. Residents of British Columbia (67 per cent) and in particular Vancouver (71 per cent) were most likely to have gone through a roadside check.
"Visible, effective enforcement is a proven tool in the fight against impaired driving," said Therien. "If people believe they will be caught, they are far less likely to offend. When the chance of being caught is 40 per cent, the police are doing a very good job."
Seventy per cent of Canadians said they never drive after drinking any amount of alcohol. Respondents in the Atlantic provinces were least likely to drink and drive. According to the Canada Safety Council, this confirms that social drinkers have gotten the message.
"Behaviour patterns have changed," concluded Therien. "If they're going to be drinking, most people plan ahead not to drive."
"We've come a long way in the fight against drinking and driving in changing the behaviour of most Canadians," said Mark Yakabuski, Vice President of the Insurance Bureau of Canada. "But there is still a lot to be done to reach repeat offenders and to further enforcement of impaired driving legislation."
Forty-one per cent of men but only 18 per cent of women admitted to driving after drinking any amount of alcohol.
Less than one per cent of respondents admitted to drinking before driving several times a week. This is in line with research that identifies hard core drinking drivers as the less than one per cent of drivers who cause a disproportionate number of road crashes, injuries and deaths. Five per cent said they drive after drinking every week or two. Of the total six per cent who regularly drink and drive, most were men (77 per cent) and over 1/3 had a university degree.
"The test of any law is its perceived effectiveness," commented Environics Vice President Chris Baker. "Although Canadians are changing their behaviours in a positive direction, many believe those charged with impaired driving stand a good chance of evading conviction. That is clearly not the case."
Baker noted the poll shows a misconception of how the justice system applies the law, which may undermine public confidence that governments are taking the problem of impaired driving seriously. "Canadians need to know the law is very effective in its application," he said.
In 2000, crashes involving drinking drivers killed 864 people. Drinking drivers were involved in over 3,300 serious injury crashes.
The Environics Research Group surveyed 2,088 Canadians between September 25 and October 16, 2000. Nationally, the results are accurate to within +/- 2.2 per cent, 19 times out of 20. The Canada Safety Council commissioned the poll, with financial support from Justice Canada, the Insurance Bureau of Canada, the Motorcycle and Moped Industry Council and the Driving School Association of Ontario.
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