Introduction An ignition interlock is for a drunk driver post-arrest or conviction. Ignition interlocks have no relation to passive alcohol detection systems that use sensors integrated into a car that passively determine if the person behind the wheel is drunk. Research and data prove that ignition interlocks are the best way to stop a drunk driver from continuing to drive drunk. From 2006 to 2020, these devices stopped over 3.7 million attempts to drive drunk with a breath alcohol concentration of .08 or greater. These devices offer the only technology available that overrides the dangerous decision to drink and drive. For that reason, in 2006, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) included interlocks in its Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving. Effectiveness of ignition interlocks ✓ Reduce repeat drunk driving offenses by 67% while the device is installed compared to license suspension alone. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011) ✓ Mandatory laws for all convicted drunk drivers reduce deaths by 16 percent (Insurance Institute for Auto and Highway Safety, 2018). ✓ Interlock is more effective than license suspension alone, as 50% to 75% of convicted drunk drivers continue to drive on a suspended license. (Nichols and Ross, 1990) ✓
As part of the Campaign, MADD recommends the mandatory installation of ignition interlocks in every state for every drunk driving offender. Interlocks must be installed for a minimum of six months. States should provide strong incentives for interlock use and compliance by drunk drivers. The first state ignition interlock pilot program began in California in 1986. When MADD launched the Campaign in 2006, there were only 100,000 interlocks installed in the United States. As of August 2017, there were nearly 349,000 interlocks in use. What is an ignition interlock? An ignition interlock is a device about the size of smart phone that requires a driver to blow into a mouthpiece to test their breath alcohol concentration before they can start a vehicle. If the device detects an alcohol level greater than allowed by the monitoring authority, it prevents the engine from being started.
Today, 34 states plus Washington, DC require or highly incentivize the use of an ignition interlock for every convicted offender. However, this 2021 Ignition Interlocks Laws in the United States found 245 gaps in the states’ interlock laws that MADD is urging Governors and legislatures to close in their upcoming sessions. The urgency for state action has grown as drunk driving deaths spiked over the past year even as vehicle miles traveled plummeted across the U.S.
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