Drug-drive reoffending up 24% in a year as experts call for immediate suspension of offenders

Ministry of Justice figures obtained by road safety charity IAM RoadSmart suggested there were 3,193 drug-drive incidents in 2024 by people who had committed the same offence previously, up from 2,579 in 2023.

IAM RoadSmart said the statistics demonstrate the need for a national drug-drive rehabilitation course.

A motorist suspected of drug-driving by police is initially put through a roadside test.

If this has a positive result, they are taken to a police station and asked to provide a blood or urine sample for laboratory analysis.

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IAM RoadSmart said delays of up to six months to process blood tests could lead to reoffending, as people who have failed roadside tests are allowed to continue to drive while their results from police station tests are pending.

Joshua Eldred, then aged 31, was handed a 12-year prison sentence at Chester Crown Court in October 2024 after killing Tim Burgess, 48, in a head-on crash while driving under the influence of alcohol and cocaine.

Eldred, of no fixed abode, was arrested and bailed 10 days earlier after crashing into a stationary car, pending a blood test result which was positive for drugs and alcohol.

The Government’s road safety strategy published earlier this month proposes to give police the power to suspend the licences of people suspected of drug-driving.

While a drink-drive rehabilitation scheme has been in place for 25 years, there is no national programme for drug-drivers.

Department for Transport figures show 74 people were killed in crashes on Britain’s roads in 2024 in which a driver being affected by drugs was recorded as a contributory factor.

IAM RoadSmart policy, public affairs and communications manager William Porter said: “The system for dealing with drug-drivers hasn’t kept pace with the huge increase in reoffending.

“The fact that those who have tested positive to a roadside test are allowed to get back into the driving seat pending a laboratory blood test shows that the system is broken.

“We welcome the proposed Government shake-up and would like to see an immediate suspension when a driver has provided a positive roadside saliva drug test.

“We also need to see the introduction of a drug-drive rehabilitation course with better screening for drug and mental health problems and with clear pathways to treatment.

“Drug-drivers often need support to break the pattern of reoffending by changing their mindset and habits, understanding how drugs impair driving, and the serious consequences for themselves and others.”