This study compares estimates of the proportion of driver fatal accidents involving alcohol from two data sources, accident reports and reports of blood alcohol concentration. Based on 558 driver fatalities in Texas, 51 percent of the drivers were legally intoxicated as defined by a BAC greater than or equal to 10 percent blood alcohol by volume. Accident reports for these same driver fatalities reported alcohol as a contributing factor in the accident in only 21 percent of the fatalities.
Abstract