Whether you’re a football fan or not, you are likely aware that the Super Bowl is this weekend. And for many folks, watching football and drinking go hand-in-hand. Not surprisingly, Super Bowl weekend is a time of year when we see a definitive spike in drunk driving.
Unfortunately, the drunk drivers themselves are not be as easy to see. Some groups are doing what they can to identify drunk drivers, from police cracking down on enforcement to chip makers creating a bag of chips that can detect alcohol on a person’s breath. However, these efforts may not help an individual driver sharing the road with a potentially intoxicated person. Below are seven signs that a driver next to you could be intoxicated.
- He or she is driving way too fast or way too slowly.
- He or she is swerving out of or in between lanes.
- He or she did not stop at a stop sign or red light.
- He or she is driving on the wrong side of the road, or in a parking or bike lane.
- He or she is taking wide or last minute turns and failing to use the turn signal.
- He or she is following you or another vehicle too closely.
- He or she is driving without headlights on.
These can all be indications that a driver is drunk or otherwise impaired. If you spot someone exhibiting these behaviors this weekend, it would be a good idea to steer clear of them.
Sadly, it is not always possible to spot a drunk driver and avoid them. Victims of drunk driving accidents often don’t see the car barreling through the intersection, and they couldn’t predict that an oncoming vehicle would swerve into their lane.
While there are signs of intoxication that a drunk driver may exhibit, it is simply impossible to expect individual motorists to identify and avoid every drunk driver. It is, however, expected that drivers will take seriously their obligation to drive safely and sober. Anyone who fails in this duty can and should be held accountable for any damages they cause as a result.