Private breathalysers nothing more than toys, cops say

Testing yourself before you drive with a store-bought breathalyser no guarantee of dodging a drunk driving fine

Sales of breathalysers go through the roof during the festive season as party-goers try to make sure that extra beer or shot is not going to earn them a ticket and fine.

However, police say sitting in the driver's seat and breathing into a privately-purchased breathalyser before you drive home is as big a waste of time as buying the device in the first place.

An expensive toy
"You still cannot be sure that your blood alcohol level (BAC) is below 0.5 per thousand," Knud Reinholdt, an officer with the traffic division of the South Jutland Police, told DR. "They are literally just a toy."

Web outlets like med24.dk and testdig.dk report selling up to three times as many breathalysers during the months leading up to Christmas, but Reinholdt cautioned drivers that the results would not stand up in court.

READ MORE: Police empowered to confiscate cars from first-offence drunk drivers

"We will take you in for a blood test if our breathalyser shows a BAC of more than 0.5 per thousand, even if your own meter shows less," said Reinholt. "It might be better to spend your money on a taxi."

 





  • How internationals can benefit from joining trade unions

    How internationals can benefit from joining trade unions

    Being part of a trade union is a long-established norm for Danes. But many internationals do not join unions – instead enduring workers’ rights violations. Find out how joining a union could benefit you, and how to go about it.

  • Internationals in Denmark rarely join a trade union

    Internationals in Denmark rarely join a trade union

    Internationals are overrepresented in the lowest-paid fields of agriculture, transport, cleaning, hotels and restaurants, and construction – industries that classically lack collective agreements. A new analysis from the Workers’ Union’s Business Council suggests that internationals rarely join trade unions – but if they did, it would generate better industry standards.

  • Novo Nordisk overtakes LEGO as the most desirable future workplace amongst university students

    Novo Nordisk overtakes LEGO as the most desirable future workplace amongst university students

    The numbers are especially striking amongst the 3,477 business and economics students polled, of whom 31 percent elected Novo Nordisk as their favorite, compared with 20 percent last year.