Reported road casualties Great Britain: fatal 4 - drink and drugs factsheet, 2023
Updated 28 November 2024
© Crown copyright 2024
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/reported-road-casualties-great-britain-fatal-4-factsheet-2023/reported-road-casualties-great-britain-fatal-4-drink-and-drugs-factsheet-2023
About this release
This factsheet gives an overview and key statistics on collisions related to the drink or drugs component of the fatal 4 in Great Britain as reported by or to the police from 2014 onwards. Details on the fatal 4 can be found in the overall fatal 4 factsheet
The results presented in this factsheet are based on analysis of road safety factors recorded by police officers attending a collision. As road safety factors have only been introduced for some police forces during 2023 the bulk of this data is based on mapping of data recorded in the old contributory factors system to road safety factors. Analysis of this change can found in the road safety factors: initial analysis report.
1. Main findings
The figures in this factsheet are based on information recorded as contributory or road safety factors. Accredited official statistics on drink-drive casualties are published separately, and provide the definitive estimates of drink-drive fatality numbers. Figures based on CFs are likely to be under-reported by comparison, but allow a wider range of analyses of collisions and casualties involved, as well as comparison between drink and drugs.
This factsheet illustrates the numbers and trends in fatal collisions involving at least one drink or drugs related factor, based on data to 2023. The figures, based on collisions with at least one contributing factor recorded, show that 19.6% of fatal collisions in 2023 had at least one drink or drugs related factor assigned.
This analysis show that drink or drugs related fatal collisions:
-
were more likely to occur on Saturdays
-
were more likely to occur during late evenings to midnight
-
mostly involved male drivers and those aged between 25 to 34
-
were most common for cars
2. Things you need to know
Information about data sources, strengths and limitations can be found in the overall fatal 4 factsheet
Contributory factors are based on the opinions of the reporting officer within a short time of the collision, and not the results of detailed investigation.
For this factsheet drink or drugs is defined using the following two road safety factors (RSFs):
-
affected by alcohol
-
affected by drugs
All charts and tables in this factsheet include breakdowns between the different factors.
As the number of fatal collisions each year is relatively small, in the following sections we have often grouped the latest 5 years of data to show patterns more clearly.
3. Overall summary
Table 1 shows that 19.6% of fatal collisions in 2023 were assigned at least one drink or drugs related factor. Specifically, 282 of 1,441 fatal collisions with at least one factor assigned[footnote 1] were assigned a drink or drugs factor.
If different drink or drugs factors were assigned to one collision, then the collision is counted in more than one category for the calculation of the overall number of drink or drugs collisions in Table 1 – and so the total percent below adds to greater than 19.6%.
Table 1: Number and percent of reported fatal collisions involving drink or drugs related factors, Great Britain: 2023
| Factor | Number of collisions | Percent of collisions (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Driver or rider affected by alcohol | 190 | 13.2 |
| Driver or rider affected by drugs | 149 | 10.3 |
| At least one drink or drug related factor | 282 | 19.6 |
4. Collision circumstances
In this section, trends for collisions with at least one drink or drugs related factor are shown. These are presented both for collisions with at least one drink or drugs factor and for each factor individually.
4.1 Trends
Chart 1 shows that the overall number of drink or drugs related collisions increased since 2022.
Of the individual factors affected by alcohol has had a stable trend over the last 10 years. Affected by drugs has also been stable with distinct increases in 2017 and 2023.
Chart 1: Number of fatal collisions with at least one drink or drugs related factor by factor and year, Great Britain: 2014 to 2023
4.2 Monthly breakdown
Chart 2 shows that the trend is steady across the year, with hugher number of collisions occuring during autumn. For the affected by drugs factor there was an increase between July to September and December to January.
Chart 2: Percentage of fatal collisions in each month: drink or drugs related collisions, Great Britain: 2019 to 2023
4.3 Day of the week
Chart 3 shows fatal collisions assigned the affected by alcohol or affected by drugs factors occurred more frequently mainly on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
Chart 3: Percentage of fatal collisions by day of week: drink or drugs related collisions, Great Britain: 2019 to 2023
4.4 Hour of day
Chart 4 shows that a higher proportion of overall drink or drugs related fatal collisions occurred between 8pm and 4am.
Chart 4: Percentage of fatal collisions by hour of day: drink or drugs related collisions, Great Britain: 2019 to 2023
4.5 Road type
Chart 5 shows that the majority of drink or drugs related collisions were recorded on rural roads. This patern was similar for both individual factors.
Chart 5: Percentage of fatal collisions by type of road: drink or drugs related collisions, Great Britain: 2019 to 2023
| Factor | Motorways | Rural | Urban | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Affected by alcohol or drugs | 5.0% | 55.0% | 39.9% | 100% |
| Affected by alcohol | 4.2% | 56.4% | 39.5% | 100% |
| Affected by drugs | 6.7% | 53.1% | 40.3% | 100% |
5. Vehicles and drivers involved
In this section, the characteristics of vehicles and drivers involved in fatal collisions are analysed by whether a drink or drugs related factor is assigned to the vehicle or driver.
HGV denotes heavy goods vehicles, over 3.5 tonnes. The van category includes light goods vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes maximum gross weight.
5.1 Vehicle type
Cars accounted for the majority of vehicles with drink or drugs factors that were involved in fatal collisions with 76% of all vehicles assigned at least one drink or drugs related factor being cars. Across the different drink or drugs factors there is little difference in the proportion assigned by vehicle type.
Chart 6: Distribution of vehicle types for fatal collisions with different drink or drugs related factors, Great Britain: 2019 to 2023
A higher number of cars and vans were found among vehicles with a drink or drugs related factor.
Chart 7: Percentage of vehicles in fatal collisions with different drink or drugs related factors assigned, by vehicle type, Great Britain: 2019 to 2023 (selected vehicle types only)
| Vehicle Type | Affected by alcohol or drugs | Affected by alcohol | Affected by drugs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car | 11.8% | 8.7% | 5.3% |
| HGV | 4.2% | 2.6% | 2.3% |
| Motorcycle | 5.9% | 4.4% | 2.5% |
| Pedal Cycle | 3.9% | 3.5% | 0.8% |
| Van | 11.2% | 7.4% | 6.0% |
| All Vehicles | 9.8% | 7.2% | 4.3% |
5.2 Driver age and sex
Chart 8 shows shows the majority of drivers or riders involved in fatal collisions assigned at least one drink or drugs related factor were male, with the proportion male drivers being even higher for the drugs factor. Male drivers are more common in all fatal collisions, but the proportion of male drivers is even higher for collisions assigned at least one drink or drugs related factor.
Chart 8: Percentage of drivers or riders in fatal collisions, with different drink or drugs related factors by sex, Great Britain: 2019 to 2023
| Factor | Female | Male | Not Traced | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Affected by alcohol | 10.2% | 86.7% | 3.1% | 100% |
| Affected by drugs | 6.7% | 91.4% | 1.9% | 100% |
| Affected by alcohol or drugs | 9.1% | 88.3% | 2.6% | 100% |
Chart 9 shows that the age group accounting for the largest proportion of drivers or riders with a drink or drugs factor assigned was 25 to 34 year olds, with 30% of all drivers or riders involved in fatal collisions with at least one drink or drugs factor being aged between 25 and 34 years old.
It should be noted that 17 to 24 is a narrower age band than 25 to 34 year olds and therefore may have less drivers and riders in it. The proportion of drivers or riders with a drink or drugs factor assigned decreases as age increases.
Chart 9: Distribution of driver or rider ages for fatal collisions with different drink or drugs related factors, Great Britain: 2019 to 2023
6. Resulting fatalities
In this section, the figures presented relate to people killed in collisions involving at least one drink or drugs related factor. These fatalities may or may not not themselves have a factor associated with them.
6.1 Road user type and casualty class
Chart 10 shows the number of road users killed in collisions with a drink or drugs related factor. In drink or drugs related collisions, the highest proportion of fatalities were car occupants, with 48% of fatalities in collisions with at least one drink or drugs related factor assigned being car occupants, followed by pedestrians (31%) and then motorcyclists (12%).
Chart 10: Distribution of road user types for fatalities in collisions with different drink or drugs related factors 2019 to 2023
Considering fatalities by road user type, a higher proportion of pedestrians, van occupants and car occupants were killed in drink or drugs related collisions. 22.5% of all pedestrian fatalities occurred in collisions where at least one drink or drugs related factor was assigned, the corresponding value for car occupants was 19.2% and 18.6% for van occupants.
A smaller proportion of pedal cyclist and motorcyclist fatalities were in collisions assigned a drink or drugs related factor, 14.9% of pedal cyclist fatalities and 10.1% of motorcyclist fatalities occurred in collisions were at least one drink or drugs related factor was assigned.
Chart 11: Percentage of fatalities in collisions with different drink or drugs related factors assigned, by road user type, Great Britain 2019 to 2023 (selected road user types only)
| Vehicle Type | Affected by alcohol or drugs | Affected by alcohol | Affected by drugs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car Occupant | 19.2% | 14.6% | 8.6% |
| HGV Occupant | 6.7% | 4.0% | 4.0% |
| Motor Cyclist | 10.1% | 6.6% | 5.1% |
| Pedal Cyclist | 14.9% | 9.0% | 8.7% |
| Pedestrian | 22.5% | 17.1% | 9.6% |
| Van Occupant | 18.6% | 14.1% | 8.5% |
| All Vehicles | 17.6% | 13.0% | 8.0% |
Chart 12 shows that the approximately half of those killed in drink or drugs related collisions were drivers or riders with 49.3% of all fatalities in collisions involving at least one drink or drugs related factor being drivers or riders.
Chart 12: Percentage of fatalities by casualty class: in collisions with drink or drugs related factors assigned, Great Britain 2019 to 2023
| Factor | Driver or rider | Passenger | Pedestrian | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Affected by alcohol or drugs | 49.3% | 19.8% | 30.9% | 100% |
| Affected by alcohol | 48.0% | 20.2% | 31.8% | 100% |
| Affected by drugs | 48.9% | 22.0% | 29.0% | 100% |
6.2 Casualty age and sex
Chart 13 shows that, as with drivers, males accounted for the highest proportion of fatalities in drink or drugs related collisions. In many cases, but not always, those killed will be drivers with drink or drugs factors assigned.
The proportion of those killed that are female is higher than equivalent proportion of drivers or riders assigned a drink or drugs related factor (which is shown in Chart 8). This is because the fatal casualties are not necessarily the drivers or riders in fatal collisions.
Chart 13: Percentage of fatalities by sex: in collisions with drink or drugs related factors assigned, Great Britain 2019 to 2023
| Factor | Female | Male | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affected by alcohol or drugs | 20.3% | 79.7% | 100% |
| Affected by alcohol | 20.5% | 79.5% | 100% |
| Affected by drugs | 20.8% | 79.2% | 100% |
Chart 14 shows that the age groups accounting for the largest proportion of those killed in drink or drugs related collisions are those between 25 to 34 years old, 24% of all fatalities in collisions with at least one drink or drugs related factor assigned are in this age range. The proportion of fatalities that occur in each age band decreases as age increases.
Chart 14: Distribution of fatality ages for fatalities in collisions with different drink or drugs related factors, Great Britain 2019 to 2023
7. Related information
This factsheet is based on information collected largely as contributory factors. Other statistics on drink and drug drive casualties includes:
- Annual drink drive statistics, with the most recent data up to 2022
- Analysis of drug-drive fatalities based on data collected from coroners
8. Background
8.1 Strengths and limitations
STATS19 data provides a long time series of data, collected by the police using agreed guidance and specification for fatalities.
Contributory factors are based on the opinions of the reporting officer within a short time of the collision, and not the results of detailed investigation. Therefore, factors are vulnerable to cognitive biases of the reporting officer, as they are assigned on the basis of individual judgement. More details on contributory factors are available in our guide to CFs.
This analysis is based on mapping from CFs recorded to RSFs. It may be that if RSFs were recorded directly then different factors would have been assigned. This particularly relates to the drink or drugs category, where the definition is wider than has previously been used.
-
Statistics on collisions assigned a drink or drugs related factor are based on cases where an officer attended the scene and recorded at least one factor. In 2023, there were a total of 1,522 fatal collisions in Great Britain, of which 1,441 were attended by a police officer who recorded at least one contributory or road safety factor. ↩