If you’ve lost a family member to a drunk driver or been involved in a serious accident that left you with devastating injuries, you may have one simple question: Why? Why would someone put you in danger like this? Why would they get behind the wheel, knowing full well that they were impaired and may cause an accident?
There are many different reasons and excuses that people give. To put an end to drunk driving, we need to understand what these are and how to address them.
They actually think it’s safe
One of the biggest reasons is just that many drivers, especially when they’re young, believe that they can still be safe even when they know that they’re over the legal limit. They know that this process is illegal by the letter of the law, but they think of that more as a restriction than a safety measure. Clearly, their perception that they can drive safely is proven incorrect when they cause a crash, but they believe it up until that point.
They’re focused on something else
A lot of drivers have other goals. For instance, researchers found that a concerning amount of drunk drivers were on their way to meet romantic partners. They may have known that driving was unsafe, but they wanted to get to that meeting badly enough that they decided to take the chance.
They do not know that they’re drunk
You also have drunk drivers who may know that they have been drinking but not that they’re impaired. Alcohol can impair your decision-making abilities, so someone who is intoxicated becomes increasingly bad at understanding just how impaired they are. Additionally, people who drink frequently may become very comfortable with how it feels and not realize how dangerous it is to drive in that condition.
Of course, these are just a few of the reasons that people drive when they’re impaired; there are hundreds of other reasons and excuses. At the end of the day, if they cause an accident, the reason itself doesn’t change that outcome. Those who are seriously injured must know about all of the legal options they have.