Super Bowl Sunday sees 15% drink driving spike

American football fans are being urged not to drink and drive next weekend after research revealed drink driving offences are 15% higher on Super Bowl Sunday.

Drink driving offences increase on average by 15% throughout the US on Super Bowl Sunday

Alcohol Monitoring Systems, AMS, studied the drinking behaviour of more than 465,000 DUI (driving under the influence) offenders 24/7 for alcohol consumption.

It showed that drinking violations shot up an average of 15% nationwide on Super Bowl Sunday.

The majority of those who took part in the study were considered to be high-risk, repeat drunk drivers who were aware they were being monitored and that there would be consequences, including prison.

In addition, the research showed drink driving violations more than quadrupled on average in states and regions with a team playing in the game.

For example, when the New England Patriots played against the Seattle Seahawks in 2015, the number of offenders in New England was five times higher than the rest of the US, while Washington saw a 59% spike in offences compared to a regular Sunday.

Lou Sugo, AMS vice-president, said: “Alcohol and the big game go hand-in-hand and when there’s drinking some people make bad decisions, especially about driving.

“The individuals we monitor are being tested every 30 minutes and they know they’re going to be caught.

“You can imagine the rate of drinking for those who aren’t being monitored.”

According to date from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 43% of all traffic fatalities on Super Bowl Sunday in 2012 were resultant of drunk driving, compared to an average of 31% during the rest of the year.