"I just had five drinks... I can drive, no problem.&quo

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Yeah, so I've been having this issue with a friend who thinks he can still drive after five shots (within six hours, so not like all in a row). Now, he's no lightweight, and he wasn't visibly uncoordinated even after that much, nor could I have told that he had had anything to drink at all. But still--even before it's obvious, you're slower at reacting, and with how people drive around here, that can be a recipe for an accident. I did do some minor research and it seems that what he had would put him near the legal limit, though possibly not over it.

Problem is, I don't know how to exert the social pressure that would cause him to get a cab or let somebody else drive him home. I offered to drive. I don't want the guy smashed up on the road, nor do I want him to hit anybody else. But he's one of those people who thinks that he's always in control and nobody else ever knows any better than him. As far as our relationship goes--we're on friendly terms, that's all. We'd wave if we saw each other in the hallway. That's about it...

Has anybody figured out how to do this? How to get somebody not to do something as stupid and dangerous as getting in their car after they've been drinking? I've got no social leverage with him at all, and when it comes to stuff like this it's really all about the leverage...

Why should you exert any "social pressure" on someone you barely even know, who possibly isn't even breaking any laws? All you can do at times like this is offer to be a designated driver on drinking outings, if you're invited along.

Just ask "Is it a good idea to be driving after all those drinks?" and see what he says. If he argues say, "what if you have a wreck. What if you hit someone else and injure or kill them." That always seems to work.
If you don't know him very well, you can't exactly take his keys from him. Or can you? Take the keys and give them back after he sobers up. Let him sleep on the couch.

The way I calculated, probably hovering around the legal limit, yeah.

I'm not good at assessing people's impairment. Unless someone is staggering around, I can't seem to pick up on the fact that they are under the influence. I suspect this is because I am really bad at reading people anyway so I can't see abnormal (drunken) behavior any easier than normal behavior.

I remember office parties where the next day someone would comment about how drunk somebody got and I didn't even have a clue. They were the same to me as when not drunk. Or maybe because everyone is louder and more boisterous at an office party I didn't notice anything out of place.

TBH, I can't tell either. I can just tell by how many they've had--mental calculation based on gender, body weight, how many drinks, whether they've had food in their stomach too. By the time I can tell they're drunk without the calculations, they're stumbling and slurring their words and throwing up.

If he wrecks and kills himself, at least we know he was mistaken about his tolerance level. If he wrecks and kills someone else, how would he feel? And, it is irrelevent whether he feels he is ok to drive or not - what would a breathilizer say if he got pulled over? Too many chances for a bad outcome. Much easier to just not take the chance.

The legal limit in my state is .08. But to get there, depending on height and body weight, you'd have to down those 5 shots in about 2 hours on average. Further, my state has a law stating that bars and such are liable for drunks in their establishment if they drive home, IDK if hes drinking at your house, or in a bar somewhere, but thats something to look into if hes in a public place drinking (The bar will literally have a bouncer confiscate your keys if they think you're too drunk, or call the cops if they dont have a bouncer). Finally, in my state (Again, alot of this depends on the laws in your state), DUI is a $5000 ticket, so not something to take lightly.

Now, since you said hes just a friend, America being what it is, someone, or two or three, I didn't read all the posts, it really is his life and theres only so much you can do to exert any sort of control over him. You can call the cops and give them his license plate, but if you can't even tell hes drunk, theres a decent chance a cop wouldn't either, and refusing a breathalyzer isn't a crime in most states, its a way of avoiding the cop discovering you've been drinking at all. You can call em anyway if you're really concerned, thats what they're there for, but you might alienate his friendship in the process. It really boils down to what you want to do or care about.

My personal suggestion is to let him have his own life in his own hands. I see drunks on the road all the time (Particularly during summer, and on Fri/Sat nights), but I don't call the cops on em because if they end up in a crash and kill someone else, I figure thats their choice to live a life like that, sad as it might be, trying to "help" them by sticking my nose into it is just as likely to get my nose bent out of shape for my trouble, so No Thanks. Maybe they'll be really lucky and have an accident that only involves them and they'll learn a greater lesson then I or anyone else could ever teach them.

Thanks for reading if you have.

you can always call the police and see what they think. they can coerce him into a more sensible mentality. i really have no pity on those who would endanger others lives for the sake of a drink. a person like that probably shouldn't even have a license to begin with.

Unless he weighs around 130 lbs or less, then he can legally drive. His BAC would be below 0.08

5 shots in 6 hours really isn't much alcohol. I'm sure it's below the legal limit.

You can`t make him do what you want.
You CAN be in control of yourself.

So, if he wants to drive, simply say you aren`t comfortable being in the car with him, you`ll take a cab.

I have done this, it is not impossible.