The number of people killed and injured in road crashes caused by drug-drivers has hit a record high.
There were 1,757 vehicles involved in crashes in 2022 in which police blamed a drug-impaired driver, Department for Transport figures show. In total, 2,715 people were injured or killed – almost 50 a week – compared with 944 a decade ago.
And last year, 97 people died because of drug-drivers – more than three times the 32 who were killed 10 years ago Officers now routinely carry equipment to test for legal and illegal drugs – and separate figures show they are catching almost 400 offenders a week.
Some 19,160 people were convicted of drug-driving offences last year, with men in their 20s caught most. The Government passed laws to outlaw drug-driving in 2015 following concerns over crashes increasing.
Cocaine, heroin, cannabis, ketamine, amphetamines and ecstasy can all be picked up by police drug tests, as well as prescription medications such as methadone, diazepam and morphine. Tragic cases include Lily Lockwood, 10, who was run over by a driver on cocaine in Dartford, Kent, in 2021.
Summer Mace’s sister Jade, 25, mum Lisa, 49, and stepdad Paul Carter, 41, were killed in a high-speed smash on the A47 in Norfolk in January this year. Aurelijus Cielevicius, 39, of King’s Lynn, Norfolk, got 10-and-a-half years after admitting causing death by dangerous driving. He was on a cocktail of drugs including crystal meth, mephedrone and cannabis – and overtaking at 96mph in a 50mph zone.
Trainee teacher Summer, 24, also of Kings Lynn, whose petition calling for tougher sentencing has 13,000 signatures so far, said: “Our justice system is broken. He killed my beautiful family instantly and somehow got out with hardly a scratch. If you get in a car with drugs in your system, you’re bound to kill or seriously hurt someone.”
The AA’s Jack Cousens said: “It’s worrying casualties caused by drug-driving have continued to increase over the last decade. While more enforcement is welcome, we need a campaign to tackle this scourge quickly before the numbers spiral out of control.”
The Government said: “Driving under the influence of drugs is unacceptable. We have tough penalties and rigorous enforcement in place.”
Killers who got behind the wheel high
Drugged-up killer motorists include Gavin Prodger, who ran over a girl of 10 going to the park. Prodger, who was on cocaine, speeding and using his phone, hit Lily Lockwood as she crossed a road in Dartford, Kent, in 2021. The 53-year-old, of Rochester, got 12 years.
Bridgette Rooney, 38, of Arborfield, Berks, was on alcohol, cocaine and prescription medication when she hit a car driven by Kieron Johnson, 48, in 2021. She got five years and nine months.
Benjamin Norman, 41, of Wootton, Beds, got nine years for a 2018 smash on the A421 while three times the limit for cannabis that killed Thomas Smith, 19. And on Friday, Kieran Cooney, 31, got three years for hitting and killing Cinzia Ceravolo in Liverpool last August after taking cocaine. He admitted death by dangerous driving at the city’s crown court.