Australia: Drink driving laws in Australia: Everything you need to know (excerpt)
Cars Guide
By Stephen Ottley, Contributing Journalist
November 8, 2021
It’s been nearly 40 years since random breath testing and the famous ‘booze bus’ became a part of Australian driving. In that time road deaths from alcohol-related accidents have dropped dramatically, saving hundreds of families every year from trauma.
While drinking alcohol and driving is allowed there are restrictions – the famous 0.05 blood alcohol limit – and if you break that limit drink driving is a criminal offence and you’ll be facing stiff penalties.
Drink driving in Australia has been a major focus on law enforcement, and random breath testing has been a crucial tool in reducing the road toll and changing attitudes towards the highly dangerous practice that can have tragic consequences.
In this article we’ll answer the question – what is drink driving? And also look at the various laws, fines and charges that you could face if you’re caught driving over the legal limit.
Unfortunately, it’s not as simple as putting a number on how many drinks you can have and drive, as we all metabolise alcohol at different rates.
It’s also not as simple as laying out Australia’s national drinking driving laws, because each state has some specific details. So we’ll go through it state-by-state so you can see the drink driving laws that define the legal alcohol limit and the penalties you will face if you break them.
The common element in each one is your blood alcohol concentration, or BAC. This is the measurement that law enforcement officers will take to determine if you are breaking the law or not.
Put simply, BAC is the amount of alcohol in your body and is measured by the concentration on alcohol in your breath or blood. The measurement is taken in the amount of grams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood, so when you blow 0.05 into a breath tester your body contains 50 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood.
This shouldn’t be taken as legal advice and, if in doubt you should never drive if you do not feel capable of safely operating a car.
Queensland
In Queensland there are four alcohol limits based on your BAC, which will determine the severity of the penalty you face.
The four categories are – ‘no alcohol’ limit, which means you have a BAC of 0.00; general alcohol limit, this is when you BAC is equal to or above 0.05; middle alcohol limit, when you record a BAC of equal to or more than 0.10; and a high alcohol limit, which is when you record a BAC equal to or more than 0.15.
In Queensland you must maintain a ‘no alcohol’ limit if you are a leaner, P1/P2 provisional or restricted licence holder. You must also maintain a 0.00 BAC if you are driving a truck (with a GVM of 4.5t or more), a bus, a semi-trailer, taxi or limousine, tow truck, tractor, driving a vehicle with dangerous goods or teaching a learner driver.
The penalty for exceeding these limits depends on your licence and driving history. A first time offence for a learner or provisional driver caught with a BAC between 0.01 and 0.05 could mean a fine of up to $1929, loss of licence of between three or nine months and a possible prison term of up to three months.
A general alcohol breach could mean a similar fine and prison term and a licence disqualification of between one and nine months.
Confusingly, the issue of drinking alcohol in a parked car can be split between road laws and local council laws.
A middle alcohol limit offence carries a maximum fine of $2757, licence suspension for three to 12 months and a possible six month jail term.
Recording a high alcohol limit could result in a fine up to $3859, up to nine months in jail and a minimum six month suspension of licence.
Any driver who records a BAC of less than 0.10 automatically receives a 24 hour licence suspension, which could be extended if you fail to comply with police requests for further BAC testing, and can last until the matter goes to court.
Repeat drink driving offenders face stiffer punishment, with fines up to $8271, have your licence disqualified for up to two years, be sentenced to a jail term decided by the court and have your car impounded.
Once you have served your disqualification you have to hold a probationary licence for at least 12 months and may have to do a drink driving education course and have an alcohol ignition interlock fitted to your car; this is a device that requires you to record a 0.00 BAC before the car will start.
New South Wales
NSW follows a similar path to Queensland, with offences split into different categories, specifically – low-range (0.05 to 0.08), mid-range (0.08 to 0.15) and high-range (0.15 and above). However, it does treat drivers of special category drivers – such as truck drivers – differently than Queensland, with a ‘special range’ BAC of 0.02.
Penalties for breaching these laws vary dramatically based on circumstances, but a first time offender caught with a low-range BAC will have their licence suspended immediately for three months and hit with a $587 on-the-spot fine. Those penalties can increase if the matter goes to court, with a maximum fine of $2200 and your licence can be suspended for up to six months.
As part of its ‘Towards Zero’ road safety plan, the NSW state government introduced tougher penalties for first time drink driving offenders in 2019. If you are caught with a mid-range BAC you are likely to be required to fit an alcohol interlock to your vehicle, and that’s on top of a potential $2200 court-issued fine, the possibility of nine months in jail and a minimum licence suspension of six months and it could be “unlimited” if the court feels you pose a danger to society.
Those caught with a ‘high’ BAC are also subjected to the alcohol interlock program and could be hit with a $3300 fine, up to 18 months in prison and have their licence disqualified for at least 12 months, if not indefinitely.
In June 2021, the NSW government introduced harsher punishment for people caught with both alcohol and illegal drugs in their system. Penalties for these offences can range from a $5500 fine and 18 months in jail with your licence suspension, for those with low levels of alcohol and drugs in their system, there are fines of up to $11,000 and a minimum three year licence suspension for repeat, high-level offenders.
A.C.T.
The nation’s capital takes a similar but different approach when it comes to BAC levels, with a simplified system. A learner, provisional and probationary driver must have a 0.00 BAC, which also applies to drivers of vehicles with a GVM of 15t or if they are carrying dangerous goods. All other drivers are required to stay under 0.05.
Penalties vary depending on the driver’s history, but the government’s official website states that a first time offender will face a fine of up to $2250, a nine month jail term, or both, plus they could have their license suspended for up to three years.
Repeat drink driver offenders obviously face stiffer punishment, with a fine up to $3000, 12 months in prison, or both, and up to five years of licence disqualification.
A.C.T. Police also have the right to suspend your licence on-the-spot for up to 90 days if they believe the circumstances warrant it.
Victoria
The Victorian government got tough on first time drink driving offenders in 2017, introducing laws that required all drivers caught with a BAC over 0.05 to have an interlock fitted to their car for six months. In addition, anyone caught driving with a BAC between 0.05 and 0.069 faces a three month licence disqualification.
The state has some of the strictest and most comprehensive punishments in the country, with different penalties for not only low-, mid- and high-level offences but also differences based on age and experience.
For example, a general licence holder under the age of 26 caught with a BAC between 0.05 and 0.069 will receive a fine; have their licence cancelled; be disqualified from driving for at least six months; need to complete a drink drivingbehaviour change program; have the alcohol interlock for six months; and need to record a BAC of 0.00 whenever breath-tested for at least three years.
The worst drunken drivers will have alcohol interlocks fitted to their cars.
Those over the age of 26 caught with the same BAC receive a similar punishment but only have their licence disqualified for three months.
The government doesn’t publish its fines on its drink driving website, but it’s believed they range from $475 for a low-range, first-time offence up to $675 for the mid-level BAC and exceed $1500 for a BAC over 0.15.
Learner and provisional drivers caught with a BAC above 0.00 will cop a fine, have their licence cancelled, are banned for driving for at least three months, are required to take a behavioural change program, have an interlock fitted and then record a 0.00 BAC for at least three years.
The Victorian authorities can also impound your car if you are caught with a BAC of 0.10 or above or are caught with a BAC above 0.00 when your vehicle is fitted with an alcohol interlock