Alcohol
According to key figures of Trimbos Institute, the Netherlands Institute of Mental Health and Addiction, young adults (aged 18-29) are more often prone to excessive or heavy drinking than older adults [27], During weekend nights, however, young drivers do not drink-drive more often than older drivers [28]. but, compared to older drivers, their crash risk is higher at a lower blood alcohol level [29] [30]. This is probably caused by inexperience in alcohol consumption, inexperience in driving and by a combination thereof. Of all young drivers with a blood alcohol level in excess of the limit, 60% are accompanied by one or more passengers [31]. Because of this accumulation of risks, drink-driving by young drivers is a matter of concern. For more information about drink-driving, see SWOV fact sheet Driving under the influence of alcohol).
Drugs
Young men more often drive under the influence of drugs than both older drivers and young women, especially where cannabis use is concerned. Yet, not much is known about the relationship between substance use and crash risk (see SWOV factsheet Drugs and medicines). What international research has made clear, however, is that the use of multiple drugs, or the combination of drugs and alcohol results in a higher crash risk [32] [33].
