Is it true that Women in USA are involved in drunk driving? Will this affect their insurance rates?

Response : Unfortunately this is true drunk driving or dui insurance for woman is increasing.  The NHTSA study confirmed the FBI statistics showing that impaired driving by women is rising and there were more than 2,ooo deaths  because of this in USA alone. The number of impaired women drivers involved in fatal crashes increased in 10 states, and remained flat in five states-despite an overall decline of 9 percent in all drunk driver crashes in 2008 from 2007.

Once you are involved in a DUI or DWI than the insurance rate will definitely increase since you move from the low or medium risk to a high risk for the insurance companies. DUI insurance rates are much higher than the normal auto insurance rates. If you are involved in a fatal accident, you might be asked to have SR22 car insurance which is a form showing that you have insurance.  However, this is not something to panic about now with the internet, since the huge competition and internet makes online DUI insurance quotes and even cheap sr22 car insurance a possibility.

Sean : Is it true that there are devices for preventing drunk driving? How would this relate to auto insurance ?

Resonse : Drunk driving and prevention of drunk driving is something which is very important for auto insurers. Approximately two of three respondents to an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) survey said they like the idea of using advanced technology, assuming the technology is reliable, to stop drunk drivers from operating their vehicles.
A total of 1,004 people were surveyed in July 2009 as part of the IIHS’s first take on what people think about equipping all vehicles with alcohol detection devices that would be more sophisticated than the ignition interlocks in some vehicles today.
More than 40% of the respondents said they would want such devices in their own cars if offered as an option. Drinkers and non-drinkers alike favoured the concept, the IIHS reported.
Among the 33% of respondents who volunteered that they never drink, approval of the devices in all cars is at 74%. It’s still high, at 66%, among people who said they drink once a week. Even among people who said they drink four or more times a week, support for the devices is about 50%, the report found.
In the United States, most drivers involved in fatal crashes who had illegal blood alcohol levels hadn’t had a DUI conviction in the past three years. “If interlocks had been in all vehicles — not just those of prior offenders — to prevent driving above the legal limit, more than 8,000 lives could have been saved last year,” the IIHS suggested.
A major impediment is the interlock device itself, though.
Interlocks mandated for DUI offenders are “unwieldy and obtrusive,” said Anne McCartt, IIHS senior vice president for research.
“An alcohol detector that’s suitable for all drivers would have to be all but invisible and require virtually no upkeep. It would have to be quick and easy to use and provide accurate readings. No such device exists yet, but it’s being worked on.” Once we have this device the DUI car insurance and the SR22 car insurance rates would be affordable.

Mike : Is it true that woman drunk driving is on the rise? Will this affect the insurance rates?

Response : Yes this is a fact and a concern, woman drunk driving is on the rise in USA.At an event today kicking off a nationwide anti-drunk driving enforcement campaign, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood released a new study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that shows an increasing trend among women driving under the influence of alcohol. The new analysis is based on an increase, in certain parts of the nation, in the number of alcohol-impaired female drivers involved in fatal crashes in 2008 compared to the 2007 statistics.

“Impaired driving is an issue that cuts across all segments of society and, sadly, the number of arrests of women driving under the influence is on the rise,” said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “This is clearly a very disturbing trend.”

The Secretary pointed to statistics from the FBI showing that arrests for women driving under the influence increased by nearly 30 percent (28.8%) over the 10-year period from 1998 to 2007. Over that same decade, DUI arrests for men decreased by 7.5 percent, although the total number of men arrested during the period outstripped women by about four to one.

The NHTSA study confirmed the FBI statistics showing that impaired driving by women is becoming a national safety issue. According to the NHTSA analysis, the number of impaired women drivers involved in fatal crashes increased in 10 states, and remained flat in five states – despite an overall decline of 9 percent in all drunk driver crashes in 2008 from 2007.

The 10 states with increases in the number of drunk female drivers involved in fatal crashes are: Ohio, New Hampshire, Montana, Nevada, Wyoming, West Virginia, Indiana, Washington, Kansas, and Tennessee. The five states where the number of alcohol-impaired female drivers remained unchanged in 2008 were Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Oklahoma, and Utah.

The DUI car insurance would certainly rise since the DUI car accidents are fatal most of the times. SR22 form and insurance would be necessary for the offenders and this would be high. However, do not worry about this since shopping only will give you cheap and affordable sr22 car insurance quote.

 Jeff  : I was just caught for impaired driving crash? I am aftaid that I would be considered a repeated offender? Is it true that alcohol-imparied driving crashes caused by repeat offenders? Are the auto insurance rates for repeated offenders different?

Repsonse : Jeff, I would not worry much if you are strong willed and have taken the right measures so that this would never happen to you again. It is not uncommon to have one impared driving offence.

No. It is true that people with prior convictions for driving while impaired by alcohol are overrepresented among drivers in fatal crashes. According to a federal study, drivers convicted of alcohol-impaired driving during the past 3 years are at least 1.8 times as likely to be in fatal crashes as drivers with no prior convictions during the same time period and are at least 4 times as likely to be in fatal crashes in which drivers have high BACs (0.10 percent or higher).¹³

However, in 2007 only 8 percent of drivers in fatal crashes with high BACs (0.08 percent or higher) had previous alcohol-impaired driving convictions on their records. The actual incidence of previous convictions could be higher, because information on convictions was available for only the prior 3 years. In addition, some alcohol offenses are not included on driver records because of court programs that allow drivers to remove or avoid a conviction if they attend educational programs. Still, most alcohol-impaired driving fatal crashes do not involve drivers with a long history of multiple alcohol convictions.

Repeated offenders might have their license cancelled and so will not be able to drive. DUI might be asked to apply for DUI insurance and SR22 car insurance.

Ruth , San Fransico : What purpose does the ignition interlock law serve?

Drunk driving is a major cause of accidents and loss of life. This leads to high auto insurance rates. According to the National highway traffic safety administration (NHTSA) as per January 2008 – out of 1.5 million impaired drivers who have been arrested o.5 million of them are repeat offenders and do not mend their ways. It has been concluded from the data of 2007, that the drivers you had BAC levels of 0.08 or higher where involved in fatal crashes and had eight times more likely to have some prior conviction fro drinking when compared to the impaired car drivers. This has promoted 47 states now to pass ignition interlock law, which is targeted at repeat offenders. This will go a long way in prevention of accidents. An interlock is fixed in the car which is a device that will lock the ignition and prevent the car from starting if the driver is drunk. Prevention is of Drunk driving is better than the consequences that result from it.

 Have a nice day.

K C Desai.