Is drinking non-alcoholic beer while driving punishable?

Zero-alcohol beer is beer that has had its alcohol removed or is brewed to contain less alcohol than the permitted limit. Many beers are advertised as zero-alcohol on the market. In reality, this beer may have a very low alcohol content, but is still considered zero-alcohol depending on the regulations of each country.

For example, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), if a beverage has an alcohol content below 0.5%, it can be declared non-alcoholic. Germany has a similar system. Meanwhile, in Italy, non-alcoholic beer can have an alcohol content of up to 1.2%. In the UK, a bottle of beer must have an alcohol content of less than 0.05% to be labeled non-alcoholic. Labeling is one thing; whether the beer actually meets the regulated alcohol limit is another matter entirely.

In fact, in some cases, even after drinking 0% alcohol beer, traffic police still detect alcohol in breath when tested with specialized equipment. Therefore, some beers labeled 0% alcohol may still put drivers at risk of being fined if they drink too much or if the chosen beer has a higher alcohol content than advertised.

The current penalties for drunk driving are stipulated in Decree 100/2019/ND-CP (amended by Decree 123/2021/ND-CP).

- For motorcycles:

For blood alcohol concentrations not exceeding 50 milligrams/100 milliliters of blood or not exceeding 0.25 milligrams/1 liter of breath: Violators will be fined from 2 million VND to 3 million VND (Point c, Clause 6, Article 6). Their driver's license will be revoked for 10 to 12 months (Point d, Clause 10, Article 6).

Exceeding 50 milligrams to 80 milligrams/100 milliliters of blood or exceeding 0.25 milligrams to 0.4 milligrams/1 liter of breath. Violators will be fined from 4 million VND to 5 million VND (Point c, Clause 7, Article 6). Driving license will be revoked for 16 to 18 months (Point e, Clause 10, Article 6).

Exceeding 80 milligrams/100 milliliters of blood or exceeding 0.4 milligrams/1 liter of breath. Violators will be fined from 6 million VND to 8 million VND (Point e, Clause 8, Article 6). Driving license will be revoked for 22 to 24 months (Point g, Clause 10, Article 6).

-The penalties for drunk driving are as follows:

The blood alcohol concentration did not exceed 50 milligrams/100 milliliters of blood or 0.25 milligrams/1 liter of breath. Violators will be fined from 6 million to 8 million VND (Point c, Clause 6, Article 5). Their driver's license will be revoked for 10 to 12 months (Point e, Clause 11, Article 5).

Exceeding 50 milligrams to 80 milligrams/100 milliliters of blood or exceeding 0.25 milligrams to 0.4 milligrams/1 liter of breath. Violators will be fined from VND 16 million to VND 18 million (Point c, Clause 8, Article 5). Driving license will be revoked for 16 to 18 months (Point g, Clause 11, Article 5).

Exceeding 80 milligrams/100 milliliters of blood or exceeding 0.4 milligrams/1 liter of breath. Violators will be fined from 30 million VND to 40 million VND (Point a, Clause 10, Article 5). Driving license will be revoked for 22 to 24 months (Point h, Clause 11, Article 5).

In addition, the person authorized to issue fines for drunk driving may decide to impound the vehicle for up to 7 days.

Minh Hoa (compiled)

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