to be shocked by parents drinking wine then driving with kids in car?!

[Pompompurin1]

Was at a kids party recently. Live in Scotland in the sticks. We all have to drive everywhere. About 12 kids and parents there (birthday girls house). Out came some wine and most of the parents (all mums bar one bloke) had at least one glass but some had two. Only the bloke and I declined. They all had to drive home, including down a bit of national speed limit road ….some of them had multiple
small kids in the car. All ostensibly responsible normal parents with decent jobs etc. Am I naive ?! Surely this isn’t normal?! But most of them did it.

And yea it’s illegal here to even have one drink and drive.

How long between them drinking and driving? A glass of wine at 2pm then driving at say 5pm along with food then I'd not bother.
Empty stomach and almost immediately into the car, more than likely over the limit.

The party was about 2 hrs long but AFAIK there were sipping wine till the end.

Personally I don't think having wine at a children's birthday party is acceptable anyway.
And for the hostess to provide it when she knew all the guests would be driving home was down right irresponsible.

I'm with you OP. I would be shocked and disappointed in the parents willing to put their children's lives at risk. And the lives of other rosd users.
Especially given the strict drink drive laws in Scotland and the relatively high accident rates in rural areas for the very reason you describe: that people have to drive everywhere.

I would drive after one glass of wine with food in a county where it was legal (I don’t know the limit in Scotland) but no way would I drink (legally) and drive with someone else’s kids in the car.

The limit is very low in Scotland, I wouldn’t even chance half a glass.

Scotland limit is incredibly low. Very stupid but IME this kind of ‘middle-class’ drink-driving is looked on a lot more indulgently than it should be by people witnessing it.

I actually thought the limit was zero in Scotland but see now (just checked online) that it’s not zero, just very very low. Still though.

No way would they be legal in Scotland.

pretty shocking.

It's shocking how many of them would risk it.

I know. Nearly all of them! And the A-road I refer to has so many accidents. The bloke looked a bit shocked and uncomfortable but the rest of them acted like it was nothing.

I think I only ever went to one dc's party where alcohol was offered. It wasn't the norm where I am. And here most can walk home. Such an odd thing for the host to do.

I'm not shocked, sadly, but would be seriously disappointed.

I don't think them having children in the car makes a difference, anyone driving under the influence of drink or drugs can harm people in other cars, or indeed those on the pavement. They are the people I would be concerned for.

I would have said "Aren't any of you driving home?" knowing the limit is so low in Scotland.

If I remember rightly they didn't set it at zero because there could be very low levels of alcohol in your system for reasons other than drinking. So they set a very low limit so that people didn't fall foul of the drink driving law for erroneous reasons.

Oh gosh I wouldn’t even dream of having a sip with my daughter in the car, I’ve never drank alcohol and drove!

One glass over a couple of hours with snacks would be within English limits and wouldn’t worry me with a confident driver, but I appreciate Scotland is different. I wouldn’t have any personally but I am a nervous and relatively new driver - DH who has been driving for 20+ years and is extremely confident will have maybe one pint with a meal, never more.

I think you are right OP but wonder if you are new to very rural life? My parents loved a wine but were very strict on drink driving. This all worked out as we lived in the near suburbs of a major city so bus/ train/ taxi was always very easy. The usual formula for a party or Saturday night dinner out was public transport/ walk there and taxi back. I live in London and take a similar approach. Visiting friends in rural Kent and Norfolk however I am HORRIFIED by how much people drink and drive. It’s very normalised in friendship groups there I think, particularly if it’s only quiet country lanes.

Don’t think there is anything wrong with an offer of wine at a children’s party in general personally, is common but not universal in my DC’s school (lots of practicing Muslim parents who obviously don’t, but most others will if the venue allows it). People just have 1 or 2.

You know the amount of alcohol doesn’t lessen because you have food? Why would you drink and drive? It’s so absolutely unnecessary and downright dangerous.

Have lived here for several years but didn’t grow up here. (Some of the others did. Interestingly the bloke that declined wine and looked a bit shocked had recently moved from London). My kids just getting to party age so I suppose I have had my eyes opened! I know where they all live and they ALL had to drive on the A-road.

The total amount of alcohol consumed doesn't lessen, but if you have food with it, then it slows the absorption of alcohol from the small intestine and also the alcohol is cleared from the system more quickly, so blood levels of alcohol are lower than they would be if you'd drunk the same amount of alcohol without eating.

I'm in Scotland too and actually really shocked by this. I can't imagine anyone I know driving after a drink, it's just not been a thing since they made the limit effectively zero.

It takes 1 - 2 hours to metabolize a glass of wine. That starts when they start sipping. So for those who had just 1 and assuming not a huge glass, most of them will have had next to nothing in their blood stream by the time the party ended.

I don't drink in those situations because I don't think it's great to drink at a kids party and if I have one glass I will want a second. But it seems unlikely they will have been impaired from what you've described.

Right, but it’s still drinking and driving and my question to that poster was, why?

I live in Scotland. Kids parties are abundant in my
life. I can honestly say I’ve never seen this. No one in my circle (or extended circle) bothers to drink even one if they have to drive. The laws are strict.

Again This is not my experience at all. It’s simply not a thing with anyone I know. I’d go as far as to say that if someone got into the car with their kids after a couple of wines there would likely be a bit of a stooshie.

It's not that low. It is 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood. That compares to 80mg in England.

Most people can still drink a pint of beer of a small glass of wine and be under the limit.

I wouldn’t drink at all and drive. Not worth the risk imo.