Is drink driving a criminal offence?
Yes. Although drink driving is a motoring offence, it is also a recordable offence which carries a criminal conviction. A recordable offence is a criminal offence that a person can be sent to prison for. If you plead guilty or you are convicted of a drink driving offence, you are instantly given a criminal record. The main concern is the impact a criminal record can have on your employment, as well as gaining entry to countries like Canada and the United States. To learn more about a drink driving conviction, you may want to head over to our previously published blog by clicking here.
A criminal conviction may stop you from getting a mortgage or becoming a company director. To learn more about the impact of a criminal conviction, please call our team of lawyers for free initial advice.
Does a drink driving conviction show on a DBS check?
There are three types of criminal background checks that can be carried out:
- Basic DBS check (most employers carry out basic checks)
- Standard DBS check (possible contact with child/vulnerable people or a position of responsibility)
- Enhanced DBS check (working in care, schools, hospitals, banking, law etc...)
The difference between a Basic DBS check and a Standard DBS check is that a standard check will show spent convictions as well as unspent convictions. Basic checks will only reveal unspent convictions. An Enhanced DBS check will also reveal any 'intelligence' based information that the police may hold on a person.
To learn about spent & unspent convictions in drink driving cases, read our blog post.
A drink driving conviction will show on a Standard DBS check if it is unspent. This means that a conviction for drink driving will show up on a DBS check for five years from the date of conviction. If your job involves working with vulnerable people or children (you might be a school teacher, a carer or a nurse) you would normally be asked to agree to an enhanced DBS check to be considered for such a role. An enhanced DBS check will reveal any spent and unspent convictions, reprimands, warning or cautions. It will also reveal any 'intelligence' based information that is held on the Police National Computer (PNC). This might include previous arrests and complaints, even if you weren't convicted!
In summary, if your drink driving conviction was in the last 5 years, it will be revealed on all types of DBS check.
How to stop a criminal record
The easiest way to avoid the criminal conviction is to win the case. Granted, that may not sound so 'easy', but there are a few simple things to check in every drink driving case. These are;
- Lawful arrest. Why did the police stop you and did they have the power to request a roadside specimen?
- Police procedure. Do you recall the police completing paperwork during the breath test procedure? Were you asked 30 questions?
- Results. Have the police shown you calibration records and do you trust the reading?
- Disclosure. Even if you're 'guilty' of the offence, you may not be convicted if the evidence against you in not disclosed in time. The CPS regularly fail to comply with court directions or their statutory disclosure obligations. This often leads to evidence being excluded by the court and cases being thrown out.
If you have been charged with drink driving please seek immediate legal advice. Many of our cases are won on defences that we 'set up' at the very early stages of a case.
What is a spent/unspent conviction?
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 allows eligible convictions to be considered spent after a certain time frame. This means that you may not be required to disclose spent convictions. This could be because of the time since the conviction or the type of offence.
When is a drink driving conviction spent?
A drink driving conviction will be considered spent after 5 years from the date of the conviction, not the date of the offence. If the conviction is 'unspent' (the drink driving conviction is within 5 years) it will be revealed on a basic DBS check. A basic DBS check is the most common check that an employer, university or college will undertake. Normally, you will be asked to convictions
Do I have to tell my employer about a drink driving conviction?
It will normally depend on the type of work that you do, the people you work with, the offence and when you were convicted. However, the first place to check would be your employment contract or if one is provided, your employee handbook.
Often employers will only want to know about any unspent convictions (for example, a drink driving conviction in the last 5 years). In roles where there is a higher standard of criminal background check, an employer may want details of any warnings, cautions, reprimands or convictions however long ago they were. In a care home setting for example, where you are required to work with vulnerable people or children, a higher standard of check will be carried out. Normally, an Enhanced DBS Check would be required.
Driving Offence Codes
| Code | Description | Period offence remains on record |
| DR10 | Driving or attempting to drive with alcohol concentration above limit | 11 years |
| DG10 | Driving or attempting to drive with drug level above limit | 11 years |
| DR30 | Failing to provide a specimen for analysis | 11 years |
| DR40 | In charge of motor vehicle whilst alcohol level above legal limit | 4 years |
How can I delete my criminal record?
In exceptional cases, you can ask that a conviction is removed. Cautions, warnings and arrest records on the Police National Computer can be deleted by making an application to the ACRO Records Deletion Unit. This is something that we can help with. We regularly make application to the police to have records of an alleged offence deleted from the records held by the police. The application can be made using the below form:
What Shall I Do if I’m Arrested for Drink Driving?
If you find yourself accused of drink driving, the first thing to do is secure expert legal advice. Please do not speak with law enforcement without first consulting with a solicitor.
Before you do anything else, we strongly advise that you get in touch with our team of legal professionals to discuss your circumstances and options. Our team of friendly and non judgmental experts will be on hand to respond to you as soon as possible and help to navigate you through the situation from start to finish. Contact us today.
If you'd like to discuss your case in detail, contact our team of specialists on 01514228020. All our initial advice is completely free of charge. We are able to explain in straightforward terms what is likely to happen in your case.
Take a look at the most common drink driving defences.
