How to Spot a Drunk Driver and Respond Appropriately

According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) findings, traffic accidents are the largest single cause of death for people ages 5 to 27, and almost 50 percent of these accidents are alcohol-related. Check out these guidelines for spotting drunk drivers; they follow the recommendations of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and the NHTSA.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• White Paper
• Toy Phones
• White paper

Warning Signs

1. Watch out for cars that zigzag across lanes or make wide turns. Be wary of other erratic driving such as rapid braking and accelerating, or delayed responses to traffic signals.

2. Be alert to drivers who move in a straight line at an angle to the direction of the road or who swerve dangerously close to the curb or to objects along the road.

3. Look for cars that drive in two lanes at once or along the dividing line, or that drive on the wrong side of or even off the road.

4. Watch out for cars driving with headlights off at night, that drive 10 mph or more below the speed limit, or that follow you or others too closely.

5. Beware of drivers whose signals are inconsistent with their actions.

What to Do

6. Stay clear of the suspected drunk driver.

7. Jot down the car's license plate number and vehicle description and call the police at 911 or *SP on your cellular phone. Report your location, the car's direction of travel and the driver's behavior.

8. Let the authorities handle the situation.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep a pen and paper ready in your car to jot down information for this as well as other highway emergencies.
• You risk injury to yourself and others if you try to pass the suspected drunk's car, or if you follow too closely or try to stop the driver yourself.

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[tazsugs]

on 11/3/2009 be sur to leave your contact info so if your wrong the person wrongfully pulled over made to do a breath test,and sobriety test,answer the police mans questions,etc ,etc ,can file a report against you for you falsely reporting ....

[sherryk1989]

on 4/20/2009 Thanks for your article and great info..however, I would say to anyone who may think someone is driving drunk,,Please call 911...or maybe your loved one or a friend is driving drunk, it is your responsibility to call 911.. maybe if someone had called 911 on the drunk driver who killed my son, he would still be with us. Instead a repeat drunk driver is wasting tax payers money to cloth, feed and allow him to have snacks. He has visits and see his family..so please call 911..Thank you, Sherry In loving Memory C.J Hill 6-14-1984 to 7-9-2004

on 11/22/2005 When you are driving at night on a divided highway (two lanes in each direction), never travel in the passing lane. Drunk drivers who get on divided highways traveling in the wrong direction will almost always be in this lane, not realizing they are going the wrong way.

on 11/22/2005 Advise government agencies to set up Web and e-mail sites so we can report unsafe drivers without tying up 911!