DIRECT LINE UNVEILS THE WORLD’S FIRST BREATHALYSER TOOTHBRUSH – THE BRUSHALYSER

• The invention comes as new research reveals half of British adults aged 18 to 34 have taken to the roads the morning after a night out, despite feeling over the limit
• Police Forces recorded an eight per cent year-on-year increase in motorists failing roadside breath tests in the morning 
• Ahead of the festive season, Direct Line is unveiling a first-of-its-kind breathalyser toothbrush to help Brits rise responsibly and check they’re safe to drive the morning after.

Today, Direct Line unveils the world’s first breathalyser toothbrush, a game-changing invention designed to freshen up the drink driving conversation and help Brits avoid taking to the roads over the limit the morning after a night of consuming alcohol.

The reveal of the Brushalyser aims to drive behaviour change by getting people to think twice before driving on a morning hangover, embedding this seamlessly into Brits’ morning routines. Once finished brushing, users would simply blow into the breathalyser on the back of the toothbrush; the light flashes red and vibrates if over the limit, and glows green if it’s safe to drive.

The innovation comes after new research¹ from Direct Line reveals a quarter of British adults (25 per cent) admit to driving the morning after a night out, despite feeling under the influence of alcohol. Younger drivers, aged 18 to 34, are the biggest offenders with half (50 per cent) confessing to getting behind the wheel the morning after a night out. Police Forces² have reported an eight per cent year-on-year increase in motorists failing breath tests in the morning hours.

The study found drivers who attended an event this summer consumed on average a whopping 16 units, the equivalent³ of seven pints of regular strength beer or one and a half bottles of wine. These individuals are consuming more than the NHS recommended weekly allowance⁴ in under 24 hours. This Christmas could see the next spike as drivers attend festive work parties and gatherings with friends.

Lorraine Price, Head of Motor Insurance at Direct Line comments: “As one of the UK’s leading insurers, we’re on a mission to make roads safer for everyone and it’s clear drivers need a wake-up call when it comes to drinking and driving. The breathalyser toothbrush aims to remind people they could be over the limit the morning after drinking, and ties breath testing seamlessly into Brit’s morning routines. We’re mindful this is in early development stages, but change is needed now, so we’re urging people to get clued up on how long it takes to sober up. They could even consider buying a breathalyser for their home or car to test themselves before taking to the road in the morning.”

The campaign, which was developed by Weber Shandwick UK, is backed by Dr Joeran Koechling, who recently led a University of Cambridge study into the reasons behind drink driving and particularly how accurately drivers can estimate their fitness to drive after drinking alcohol.

He comments: “I’ve spent years studying road casualty data and while it’s always been concerning, the fact that people are openly confessing to taking to the roads while feeling under the influence of alcohol is shocking. This invention is incredibly smart. It embeds breath testing into a drivers’ morning routines seamlessly, even the visual reminder of seeing the breathalyser section on the back while you’re brushing your teeth acts as a prompt to take stock and test your alcohol levels.

“Road traffic injuries have become the leading killer of people aged five to 29 years, and recently, the World Health Organization has said that alcohol-related traffic accidents are one of the major causes. Our own study specifically showed drivers are strongly misjudging their alcohol levels, meaning people consider themselves fit to drive when in fact they have dangerous levels of alcohol in their blood.”

The research also showed lack of awareness when it comes to the law and limits, with 40 per cent of drivers admitting they don’t know the drink drive limit at all and over a third are unaware of the penalties if they were to be caught (35 per cent). One in ten believe breakfast, coffee and sleep will sober them up enough to be fit to drive. Almost a third (29 per cent) of 18 – 34-year-olds believe if they don’t feel drunk the morning after an evening of drinking alcohol they are fine to drive.

Supporting Direct Line in raising awareness of the campaign, Natalie Pinkham, Sports Broadcaster, said: “As a regular driver with a job that demands evening events and a busy social calendar, I understand the risks of driving the morning after a night out. If someone knows they need to travel the next day, they should either reduce how much they drink, book a taxi, or use public transport because it just isn’t worth the risk. I was drawn to support Direct Line’s innovative #RiseResponsibly campaign as I believe it will really help people to think differently about their drinking and make our roads safer. Who wouldn’t want that?”

The toothbrush, which is currently being tested for potential release in 2024, is one part of Direct Line’s wider mission to highlight the risks of drink driving, to make roads safer for all now and in the future. The car insurer is rallying the nation to think before they drive the morning after a night out. With the upcoming festive season, they are asking people to spread with word to #RiseResponsibly.

City findings

Looking at city residents’ attitude to driving the morning after, a third (33 per cent) of Londoners admit to driving while still feeling the effects of alcohol. Over a quarter (27 per cent) of those living in Cardiff have driven the morning after when they could have been over the limit, closely followed by the residents of Brimingham and Liverpool (26 per cent).

Table 1:  of drivers who admit to driving the morning after a night out, despite feeling under the influence of alcohol ranked by UK city

Ranking	City	Percentage
1	London	33 per cent
2	Cardiff	27 per cent
3 (joint)	Birmingham Liverpool	26 per cent
5	Manchester	25 per cent
6 (joint)	Southampton Sheffield Belfast*	24 per cent
9 (joint)	Bristol Newcastle	23 per cent
11 (joint)	Glasgow Brighton*	22 per cent
13	Nottingham	20 per cent
14	Norwich	19 per cent
15 (joint)	Leeds Plymouth	18 per cent
17	Edinburgh	16 per cent

*Indictive only

1. Opinium consumer research, 2,000 Nat Rep UK adults who drive and drink alcohol, carried out August 2023
2. Freedom of Information requests sent to all UK Police Forces, submitted May-July 2023, with a third providing data for the analysis comparing roadside failure rates 2021 versus 2022
3. www.torbayandsouthdevon.nhs.uk/uploads/25453.pdf
4. www.nhs.uk/better-health/drink-less/#:~:text=Alcohol%20guidelines,risk%20of%20harming%20your%20health

Source: Direct Line

  Advertising, Direct Line, Marketing, UK, Weber Shandwick