Well, I hesitated to post this for quite a few months, because it happened to a friend. And, I think most would read this as "It hapened to a friend..yeah, right!"

But, honestly, it wasn't me.

Late last year, I was consulting on a project in Detroit. Another consultant that I worked very closely with, asked about three weeks into the project if I could ferry him back to the airport every week. Of course, this was no problem, but I had to ask if his company suddenly quit allowing him/them to to use Hertzmobiles.

The answer was chilling. He'd gotten a DUI convinction, and had his license pulled. Yes, he got a "Business Only" license, but when it got on to his record, guess what? Hertz, Alamo, Enterprise, etc., would no longer rent to him for THREE YEARS. !!

This assignment worked out fine, but I just have to wonder, what about the next time, when he is an hour's drive from the airport to his work site? Or, how about taking taxis every day form the hotel to the work site?

This has got to be a miserable way to earn a living.

I'm not trying to put forth a message here, or trying to preach to anyone. It's just that this is something that Ihad never considered, really.

I guess I'm just trying to say be careful...you never know what off-line behavior may really trash your job.

If I were you, I would be wondering why he isn't rotting in prison with other people who endanger the public.

JS, you are not me.

What I posted was basically all that I know about that situation. I don't know his situation and I did not post this as a "hang 'em" call, just a note to think about what such a conviction could do to your career.

I can not judge the man, and I will not attempt to do so. I am sorry that my post both offended you sensibilities and seemed to be an invite to a "hang 'em" discussion...such was not my intent.

This was just my poor attempt to bring to the fore something about drinking and driving that some folk here may not have thought about, that's all. If you still feel that this post should be about punishments for DUI and what I think about scumbuckets that do it, I will gladly delete it and open up another thread where we can discuss THAT subject.

Just let me know.

-H

Thanks for the warning. I knew car rental firms looked at driving records before renting cars to anyone but didn't realize that they were that severe about DWI convictions. It would be pretty humiliating to have to explain to an employer or a prospective employer why you need special transportation arrangements on business trips.

If your post makes one person stop and think twice before they have another round of drinks before heading home, you've done your good deed for the day.

Thank you so much, Athena53.

Such was my only intention.

Here in the UK most car rental companies will not rent to you as long as the drink driving conviction remains on a driving licence, which is several years. It's actually printed on there.

But the UK drink driving laws are tougher than in the US. Minimum of 12 months disqualification. And here in Britain, where many of the customers are driving rather than flying distance, and public transport is so often not an option, it will probably be the end of your job too, as a couple of our consulting/sales team have found out over the years. Not only that, company cars are not an option when you finally get your licence back either as all the major corporate insurers I have worked with won't allow a driver with such a recent conviction either. You would have to have your own car and find a sky-high priced back street insurance company, who will never pay out if you claim, to give the legal cover required.

It had an indirect benefit to me many years ago, though. Senior guy at the office got allocated a new company car, then got done for drunk driving a few days before it was delivered. I got the car ! A Ford XR3i, a real street-cred machine, I still miss it 20 years later ! It finally went the way of all XR3i's and was stolen, but that's another story !

It stays on your licence for 11 years in the UK. Other driving convictions are there for 4 years.

Spike

I wrote "If I were you". My point is that if the government cared as much about drunk driving half as much as they do terrorism or school shootings, we could save 20,000 lives a year at a fraction of the cost that we blow on the TSA and public school beaureacracy.

Probably becuase he doesn't deserve to be in prison. Most states in the U.S. have a limit of .08, which can be surpassed after just one drink. Now, most people are not any more impaired after just one drink than they are by watching billboards or listening to the radio. I think most participants in the US judicial system recognize this.

NOT True - I worked in a DUI program for several years and too kthe tests myself at home - - and tested many others - it is REALLY hard ot blow a .08. MAYBE if oyu had a shot of whiskey, jumped in your car and were stopped a few blocks later you MIGHT blow a .08 although it would be really unlikely.(and if you ever DO have truly JUST ONE DRINK and then get in the car and are stopped, then be sure ot demand a blood test as that will show that you do not have .08 in your system)

Look I'm not rabid on this - I wish they would stiffen the policies on reckless driving, instead of making DUI's the nail to hang it on.
But at least in the Bay Area, of the hundreds of people I talked to who had been arrested for 1st offender DUI , manyne 5 of them had only blown an 08 -
cops only bust folks here who are doing something egregious, as they know it's easy to dispute a .08 w/ a decent lawyer.

Inany event if anyone tells you they were convicted after just one drink I would take it w/ a large grain of salt.

I sometimes wonder about the people in First Class at the end of the week that knock back drinks one after another on a three to four hour flight then hop off the plane into their transport to home. Let's hope they have a limo waiting.

I wonder if a creative attorney here in the US (god knows we have plenty of them!) could create liability for the airline in the event of something awful happening.

I have friends who fly LAX-HNL regularly, and they only upgrade on the outbound because there's no driving on arrival. After the return flight, they pick up their car and head home, 1st class-less and alcohol-less. Sensible idea.

Actually, it wouldn't take that creative of a lawyer to create the liability. The same liability (Dram Shop) that applies to a Bar/Tavern/Restraunt would apply to an airline. All that would need to be proven is that the driver, was served alcohol by the airline, and that serving of the drink is the proximate cause of the damage. Actually, the airline may be in a worse position because, in many cases, the drinks are provided for free. I think the primary reason that we haven't seen it occur from an airline side, is that the numbers of people driving from the airport after a flight and drinking are statistically lower than from a bar. A significant percentage of airline passengers are driven to and from the airport. This alone would limit the occurance of any actions.

As for DUI/DWI/OUI convictions in the US. As far as I know, these never leave your driving record. The points associated with them leave after a period of time, but the conviction never leaves, as it is a criminal conviction, and is not considered a petty crime, where your record can be expunged.

However, the OP point is a good one for those of us who choose to drink. What happens in our personal lives, can have a dramatic effect on our professional lives. If you cannot drive or rent a car because of a DUI, then your employer can terminate you, because you cannot meet your job requiremets. Honestly, how many of us have gotten by when we probably shouldn't have? I know I am guilty (and not proud of it). But this does send a message home to those of us. the comercial here in the US from Bud or Miller "Think before you drink" is a good one. Thanks for posting the story.

On Sunday, the Washington Post ran a story on the consequences of getting a DUI. Now I don't believe everything I read in the paper, but the article discussed how a woman had .9 after supposedly having only one drink.

Quote from article:
"Charles Lieber, director of the Alcohol Research and Treatment Center at the Bronx Veterans Affairs Medical Center, said women and Asians have a limited ability to tolerate liquor. Compared with men, women produce less of a stomach enzyme that breaks down alcohol. Many Asians also lack a second enzyme that rids the body of alcohol toxin, meaning a single drink can cause flushed skin and elevated blood alcohol levels, he said."

Full article "For DUI, Personal Costs Are High" is at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...2004Jul24.html

you're partally right... DUI's are criminal cases, not just traffic cases. IIRC, a DUI is on a TRAFFIC record for either 3 or 7 years but I cannot remember exactly... after that they do expire off your driving record after that time like a speeding ticket would but the DUI remains on the CRIMINAL record for life.

Generally for a first time DUI case, a person gets their license restricted to essential business, and has to go to AA or similar classes and provided that they complete those classes the DUI will be off the criminal record and be treated solely as a driving infraction and thus expires when the statue expires.