Gen Z has ‘not got the message’ on drink-driving, says car insurer

Thirty-eight per cent of Gen Z drivers agree driving while “marginally” over the legal drink-driving limit has become more socially acceptable, compared with 48% of all adults who believe it is not socially acceptable to drive after drinking at all.

Gen Z drivers are more likely to trust their own judgment when it comes to assessing whether they are safe to drive after drinking, with a third (32%) agreeing the decision should be theirs to make.

Head of Direct Line Motor Insurance Matt Pernet said: “Personal judgment is an unreliable source when it comes to knowing if you are safe to drive, especially as many adults cannot correctly identify the legal limits.

“Therefore, seeing in the results that a third of Gen Z (32%) think that they should be able to judge for themselves if they are safe to drive is extremely worrying.”

He said Government data from 2023 showed 35% of drink-driving collisions involved a driver under the age 30, and the “gap” in Gen Z’s understanding is “worrying”.

An RAC poll released on Tuesday found eight in 10 (82%) of UK drivers think tougher measures are needed to tackle drink-driving.

It has been reported that Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander is considering cutting the drink-drive limit in England and Wales as part of the upcoming road safety strategy.

The limit may be reduced from 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100ml of breath to 22 micrograms.

The survey of 2,000 drivers was conducted by Direct Line Motor Insurance in June.