Personal breathalysers now in South Africa

AlcoSense, launched in 2007, has award-winning range of electronic reusable personal breathalysers, which test the alcohol level in the breath and give a warning if the user is near or over the legal drink drive limit. The prestigious What Car? magazine in the UK awarded both the AlcoSense Elite and AlcoSense Lite its 'Best Buy' awards in their respective price categories, while the Sunday Times included the Elite in the Gadgets for Drivers section of its Best Tech list.

The South African legal drink drive limit is 0.05% BAC (breath alcohol content) or 0.02% BAC for professional drivers. Studies have shown that over half of drivers killed in road accidents lose their lives directly or indirectly due to alcohol. Six out of ten drivers killed in road accidents had dangerously high alcohol levels.

Angus MacArthur, GM of Alcohol Breathalysers said, "We are pleased to be able to extend our range of breathalysers. Drunken driving continues to be a huge problem in South Africa. According to the AA, one in fifteen drivers at night are drunk and South Africans face a 1 in 101 chance of being in a crash compared to 1 in 5000 in other parts of the world. Drunken driving can so easily be avoided. If anyone is unsure if they are safe to drive, a personal breathalyser can save them their licence and possibly their life."

Hunter Abbott, MD of AlcoSense said, "Many people do not realise that when drinking in the evening they may still be under the influence of alcohol the morning after. We know from customer feedback that our breathalysers have prevented drunken driving and have saved many lives in the UK. We hope they will have a similar impact in South Africa."

South African stats

• 6000 people are killed each year by drunk drivers (SADD)
  
• 50% of people who die on South African roads had a blood alcohol level (BAC) above the 0.05% BAC that is the legal drink-drive limit (Arrive Alive)
  
• 65% of weekend crashes are attributed to alcohol abuse (RTMC July 2012)
  
• Drunken driving is still increasing in South Africa, with an increase in driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs of 4.5% in 2010/11 and 2.9% in 2011/12 (South African Police Service)
  
• More than 15,000 drunk drivers were arrested in the Western Cape in 2009 (MES Robin Carlisle, 16 Aug 2010)