Impaired driving happens every day in Georgia. But that’s not to say that every day offers an equal amount of risk. There are certainly times at which the risk of being involved in a serious accident caused by a drunk driver is higher than average.
It’s also important for drivers to understand that the authorities are well aware of when drunk driving is more common. They often have increased enforcement efforts at these times, which can increase the risk of an arrest.
Summer
According to insurance companies that study statistics, the 4th of July is consistently the deadliest day of the year in Georgia. Drinking is very common over the holidays, and daytime holidays like the Fourth have an increased risk. This risk may extend to the weekend on years when the Fourth of July falls close to that weekend – such as on Friday or Monday – because workers generally get that day off.
When looking at specific months of the year, August poses the greatest risk of drunk driving accidents. June and September are close behind. When you combine that with the Fourth of July, as noted above, the summer is statistically one of the most common times for people to be subjected to drunk driving charges.
When is the risk lowest?
The highest rate of fatal accidents happens between midnight and 4:00 a.m., and the most dangerous day of the week is Saturday – generally because of weekend drinking habits. As a result, this means that driving during the middle of the week and the middle of the day – such as at noon on a Tuesday – is statistically going to be when there is the lowest risk on the roads.
With that said, in recent years, there is some evidence that drunk driving accidents have become more common overall. Per the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety, there were 355 of these fatal accidents in Georgia in 2019. In 2020, there were 402.
Of course, drivers can be arrested for impaired driving at any time, even when that risk is relatively low. Those who are facing charges need to know about all of the legal defense options they have, as a drunk driving conviction can be very expensive and can impact someone’s reputation, job opportunities and much more.