With drunk driving resulting in more than one million arrests, nearly 10,000 deaths and over $40 billion in economic damage each year, the personal-finance website WalletHub has released an in-depth report on 2016’s Strictest & Most Lenient States on Driving Under the Influence (DUI).

In the interest of underscoring the financial downsides of driving drunk, WalletHub analyzed the enforcement rules in each of the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia across 15 key metrics, ranging from fines and minimum jail sentences to ignition- interlock -device requirements that drastically reduce repeat arrests of previously convicted drunk drivers.

Key findings include:

  • Arizona has the harshest DUI penalties, including long jail terms
  • South Dakota is the most lenient on drunk drivers, thanks to no mandatory jail time or suspension
  • The average fine for a first DUI ($347) is higher than the Uber fare from Washington, DC to New York (up to $342)
  • The second DUI average is $757
  • All but seven states can automatically suspend the license of someone arrested for DUI
  • 92 per cent of states require offenders to equip their vehicles with ignition interlock devices after a DUI
  • DUI offenses stay on your criminal record for at least six years in 80 per cent of states, but they remain for life in five states

For the full report and to see where your state ranks, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/dui-penalties-by-state/13549/