If you blow between 40 and 50 micrograms of alcohol per 100ml of breath on an evidential breath testing machine can you request to provide a blood or urine sample instead?
The short answer is no you cannot request to replace a breath sample with a blood or urine sample if you blow between 40 and 50 mcg of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath.
The right to request to provide a blood or urine sample in place of a breath sample was known as the ‘statutory option‘.
The statutory option allowed suspected drink drivers to choose to provide a sample of blood or urine instead of a breath sample if they blew between 40 and 50 mcg per 100 millilitres of breath on an evidential breath testing machine.
The statutory option was repealed in 2015 by schedule 11 of the Deregulation Act 2015.
There is still a lot of outdated information on the internet stating that this option is still available to suspected drink drivers when arrested by the police.
The information is incorrect and outdated.
If a suspected drink driver provides a breath sample that contains 40 micrograms of alcohol per 100 ml of breath or more then they will be charged accordingly, there is no longer an option to choose to provide a blood or urine sample instead of a breath sample.
