DUI Consequences and Penalties: Everything about DUI

Key Insights:

• Driving under the influence is not only dangerous, it is also a crime in our country.
• DUI can be a felony or a misdemeanor depending on different factors.
• DUI consequences include arrest, jail time, and higher insurance rates.
• The first-time offenders might get some lenient punishment depending on the state.
• Every state has its own rules and laws for DUI offenders.

Did You Know? Every day more than 35 people die in the USA because of drunk driving crashes. Driving under the influence is one of the most common criminal offenses that most Americans are accused of. Even though DUI does not seem like a big crime, Consequences of dui are huge, especially for the middle class and lower class drivers.

RateForce has decided to write this detailed guide for everyone to help you understand what exactly is DUI, its consequences, state dui laws, and everything else. Keep reading till the end to know some effective ways to save money after a DUI on record.

What is DUI?

DUI stands for; Driving Under the Influence and it is considered a misdemeanor or felony based on the circumstances. It is an offense of driving a motor vehicle while impaired by alcohol or drugs. In simple terms; DUI means if a driver gets caught drinking and driving, the amount of toxicity in your blood higher than the amount that makes it unsafe to operate any vehicle.

Every state has its own allowed blood alcohol content level. In general, if the BAC of the driver is higher than the range of .05% to .08% then the driver will get punished under the state laws of DUI.

Is DUI a Felony?

There are a lot of factors that affect the final decision in this case like age of the driver, the mental state, the physical state, etc.

A first-time DUI driver might get a misdemeanor but in the consequent cases, it will be a felony. Even based on the level of toxication the driver might get punished for a felony for the first time only.

If an officer gives you a DUI ticket then also you can go to court to prove that it was a misdemeanor and to get it revoked from your records.

What Happens for Your First DUI Offense?

DUI laws vary a lot from state to state. Some states have lenient punishment for first-time DUI offenders while others do not have a separate section for first-time or N-time offenders. In most cases, there are a lot of other factors that affect your punishment as a first-time offender like your age, your experience on road, your driving record, etc.

As a result; we have tried to cover the general scenario of what happens with the first-time DUI offense:

• You will have to pay a fine as per the limit of your state and your BAC level.
• You might get jail time from 2 days to 180 days.
• Your driving license will get suspended from 24 hours to 1 year.
• Your vehicle will be impounded for a specific period.
• You will have to install an ignition interlock device in your car.

DUI Laws by State

Every state has its own laws and rules for DUI, some are a bit lenient with the DUI drivers and others are too strict. To help you have a better understanding we have listed out all the requirements of a DUI driver for every state of our country:

State	Minimum Jail	Fines & Fees	Minimum License Suspension	Ignition Interlock Device
Alabama	Not required	Between $600 to $2,100	3 months or 90 days	Not required
Alaska	At least 72 hours	$1,500	Minimum. 90 days	Required
Arizona	At Least 24 hours	$250 base fine	90 to 360 days	Required
Arkansas	From 24 hours to 1 year	$150 to $1,000	6 months	Required
California	From 4 days to 6 months	$1,400 to $2,600	30 days to 10 months	Required, in some areas
Colorado	Up to 1 year in case of DUI	Up to $1,000 (DUI), or up to $500 (DWAI)	9 months (DUI), none for DWAI	Not required
Connecticut	From 2 days up to 6 months	$500 to $1,000	1 year	Not required
Delaware	Maximum 6 months	$500 to $1,1500	1 to 2 years	Not required
D.C.	Maximum 90 days	$300 to $1,100	6 months	Not required
Florida	From 6 to 9 months	$500 to $2,000	180 days to 1 year	Required
Georgia	From 24 hours to 1 year	$300 to $1,000	Up to 1 year	Not required
Hawaii	None	$150 to $1,000	90 days	Not required
Idaho	Maximum 6 months	Up to $1,000	90 to 180 days	Not required
Illinois	Maximum 1 year	Up to $2,500	Min. 1 year	Required
Indiana	From 60 days to 1 year	$500 to $5,000	Up to 2 years	Not required
Iowa	From 48 hours up to 1 year	$625 to $1,200	180 days	Required, if BAC above .10
Kansas	48 hour minimum	$750 to $1,000	30 days	Required
Kentucky	Not required	$600 to $2,100	90 days	Not required
Louisiana	From 2 days to 6 months	$1,000	90 days	Possible
Maine	30 days	$500	90 days	Not required
Maryland	Maximum 1 year in case of DUI	Up to $1,000 DUI	Min 6 months (DUI & DWI)	Not required
Massachusetts	Up to 30 months	$500 to $5,000	1 year	Not required
Michigan	Up to 93 days	From $100 to $500	Up to 6 months	Possible
Minnesota	Maximum 90 days	$1,000	Up to 90 days	Required
Mississippi	Maximum 48 hours	$250 to $1,000	90 days	Not required
Missouri	Up to 6 months	Up to $500	30 days	Possible
Montana	From 2 days to 6 months	$300 to $1,000	6 months	Possible
Nebraska	From 7 to 60 days	Up to $500	Up to 60 days	Not required
Nevada	From 2 days to 6 months	$400 to $1,000	90 days	Possible
New Hampshire	Not required	$500 to $1,200	6 months	Not required
New Jersey	Maximum 30 days	$250 to $500	3 months to 1 year	Possible
New Mexico	Maximum 90 days	Up to $500	Up to 1 year	Required
New York	None	$500 to $1,000	6 months	Required
North Carolina	24 hours (for level 5 offender) (however, if 3 aggravated factors are present then it will be Level 1A with minimum of 12 months)	$200 (for level 5 offender)	60 days to 1 year	Not required
North Dakota	Not required	$500 to $750	91 to 180 days	Not required
Ohio	3 days to 6 months	$250 to $1,000	6 months to 3 years	Not required
Oklahoma	5 days to 1 year	Up to $1,000	30 days	Not required
Oregon	2 days or 80 hours community services	$1,000 to $6,250	1 year	Required
Pennsylvania	None	$300	No	Required, if refusal to take chemical test
Rhode Island	Up to 1 year	$100 to $500	2 to 18 months	Not required
South Carolina	48 hours to 90 days	$400 to $1,000	6 months	Not required
South Dakota	Maximum 1 year	$1,000	30 days to 1 year	Not required
Tennessee	48 hours up to 11 months	$350 to $1,500	1 year	Required
Texas	3 to 180 days	Up to $2,000	90 to 365 days	Not required
Utah	48 hours minimum	$700 min.	120 days	Not required
Vermont	Maximum 2 years	Up to $750	90 days	Not required
Virginia	Minimum 5 days	Min. $250	1 year	Required (if BAC .15 or above)
Washington	From 24 hours to 1 year	$865.50 to $5,000	90 days to 1 year	Required
West Virginia	Maximum 6 months	$100 to $1,000	15 to 45 days	Possible
Wisconsin	None	$150 to $300	6 to 9 months	Not required
Wyoming	Maximum 6 months	Up to $750	90 days	Required – if BAC .15 or above

DUI Consequences

Now comes the most important part; what will be the consequences of driving under the influence in any state?

• Jail Time
  If a driver gets arrested for a DUI type offense then he or she might have to spend time in jail. The jail time will be decided by the court based on the BAC level and other factors.
• The Expense of Attorney Fees
  You are asked to be present in front of the court on a specific date and the judge will decide your fine and jail time. You will have to hire an attorney to represent you in court so that you don’t get much higher fines and jail time.
• Expect Immediate Financial Liability
  Your financial liability will increase immediately as you will be declared as an unsafe driver for the insurance companies.
• Restrictions on Your Driving Privileges
  The court will decide the restrictions you will get on your driving privileges; in most cases, you will not be allowed to drive after late evening or during high traffic days. You might not be allowed to drive on weekends or during holidays.
• Expect to Pay More Money for Car Insurance
  Be ready to do your research on cheap car insurance in your state because your insurance premium will increase to a huge extent. As you will be on the list of unsafe drivers; your insurance company will ask you to pay higher premiums. In some cases, insurance companies even decline the renewal of the policy for such drivers.
• Expect to Be Placed on Probation
  You will have to go to the assigned police station at regular time intervals for a specific duration. It can be days, months, or years to sign your attendance and prove you are a responsible driver now.
• Be Ready to Attend an Alcohol Education Program
  In case you get caught more than once or your blood alcohol content level was too much higher, then you will be required to attend an alcohol education program.
• Be Ready to Complete a Formal Alcohol or Substance Use Disorder Evaluation
  The court will ask you to undergo a medical evaluation to check if you have an alcohol or substance abuse disorder. In this evaluation, they will check if you have any mental problems that are pushing you to take alcohol or any other substance in high amounts.
• Be Ready To Undergo Substance Use Disorder Treatment
  If the medical attendant and court find out that you have substance abuse disorder then you will have to undergo treatment for that. Until a doctor gives you a clean chit you will have to continue the treatment.

DUI vs DWI: What’s the Difference?

We all know that DUI stands from Driving Under the Influence. On the other hand; DWI stands for Driving While Intoxicated or Driving While Impaired. The difference between DUI vs DWI varies a lot from state to state. In some states, DUI and DWI are considered similar, and in others, they are considered separate felonies.

In some states, DUI only covers driving under the influence of Alcohol. While in the case of DWI, the driver is not able to operate the vehicle properly because of some prescribed or not prescribed drugs that are affecting his or her brain.

The definition of DUI and DWI might be different in your state too. It is always recommended to clear both the terms with your insurance agency before buying a policy.

FAQs About DUI

Over To You!

More than 1.5 million people are arrested for DUI every year. DUI can be a huge problem when it comes to renewing your insurance policy. Drivers with DUI on records are required to pay way more than the other drivers.

RateForce knows that you are looking for ways to get cheap car insurance rates this year. The best way to get affordable car insurance is to shop around and compare the rates of insurance policies with different companies.

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SOURCES

• Checked the NHTSA website to see the statistics of accidents caused by DUI drivers.
• Referred to Wikipedia to understand the laws and impact of DUI in different states of our country.
• Referred to One DUI to check the facts related to Driving Under the influence rules and laws.
• Checked the website of the Driving Laws to understand the state-wise laws for DUI drivers.