Britain’s postal areas and occupations with the highest rate of drink and drug driving convictions on their car insurance policies have been revealed.
Hereford emerged with the greatest number of drink and drug driving convictions at 2.30 for every 1,000 drivers – an increase of 0.8 compared to last year.
Crewe, 1.86, and Blackpool, 1.68, follow closely behind, while Sunderland, which last year took the top spot, has dropped to fourth place with a rate of 1.62 convictions per 1,000 people.
At the other end of the scale, London dominates the list of postcodes with the lowest conviction rates for the third year in a row.
Britain’s postal areas and occupations with the highest rate of drink and drug driving convictions on their car insurance policies have been revealed using data from over six million car insurance quotes over a year
North West London boasts the lowest rate, with just 0.45 convictions per 1,000 drivers, while four other London postal areas also feature in the bottom ten.
North, 0.56, East, 0.61, South West, 0.61, and West London, 0.67. Outside of London, the Scottish town of Galashiels is joined by Bradford, Perth, Cambridge and Luton as areas with the lowest drink and drug driving offences.
When it comes to gender, the data reveals that men, 1.34, are more than twice as likely to drink and drug drive as women, 0.66, while the total number of convictions for women has halved over the last year (1.20 to 0.66).
The analysis looked at over six million car insurance quotes run on MoneySuperMarket over 12 months – from 1 November 2017 to 31 October 2018.
Hereford emerged with the greatest number of drink and drug driving convictions at 2.30 for every 1,000 drivers – with Crewe coming in a close second with 1.86
In terms of occupation, plumbers are most likely to get behind the wheel while under the influence, an increase of 17.26 per 1,000 since 20174.
Students still remain in the top two, though numbers have decreased considerably since last year, from 28.48 to 5.93 per 1,000.
Scaffolders, ground workers and builder labourers are also amongst the top five with a greater likelihood of drink or drug driving.
Despite this, the data from MoneySuperMarket reveals that the overall drink and drug driving rate has decreased by 29 per cent since last year, from 1.47 to 1.05 per 1,0005– though this trend doesn’t apply to 17-24-year olds, for whom rates have risen by 10 per cent.
Blackpool, 1.68, came in third while Sunderland, which last year took the top spot, has dropped to fourth place with a rate of 1.62 convictions per 1,000 people
Toyota, Fiat and Porsche owners have significantly reduced their drink and drug driving conviction rates in the last 12 months, nearly halving the number of offences from 1.18 to 0.56 (Toyota), 1.95 to 0.99 (Fiat) and 0.82 to 0.47 (Porsche).
Emma Garland, data scientist at MoneySuperMarket, said: ‘With Christmas parties and festivities coming up, there is more chance of people getting behind the wheel under the influence as they may not realise how much alcohol they’ve had.
‘Driving the next morning while unknowingly still over the limit is also a key factor, especially for those who may have particularly early starting times, such as labourers and plumbers. However, it’s reassuring to see that convictions have decreased since last year and hopefully they will continue to do so year on year.
‘Drink or drug driving can be damaging not only to your licence, but also to yourself and others – so if you are doubting your sobriety, don’t put yourself or others at risk by driving, even if it seems like an inconvenience at the time.’