Dubai: Driving under the influence of alcohol can land you in serious trouble with the law. In an awareness post on its social media channels, the UAE Public Prosecution informed people of one of the penalties listed in Article 49 of the Federal Traffic Law.
In the post, the authority listed the penalty for driving a vehicle under the influence of narcotics, stating: “According to Article 49, item 6, of the Federal Law No. 21 of 1995, concerning traffic, and the amendments thereof, whoever drives a vehicle or attempts to drive a vehicle on the road while being under the influence of alcoholic drink, narcotics, or alike, shall be sentenced to imprisonment and/or fined a monetary penalty of not less than Dh20,000.”
The same law also has five other violations that can be met with the same penalty – jail and/or a minimum fine of Dh20,000. These include violations like fleeing the site of an accident or forging number plates. The complete list of violations stated in Article 49 are:
1. Fabricating or forging number plates or using a fabricated or forged plate.
2. Deformation or obliteration or changing the information on a number plate and using it for the purpose it was meant for.
3. Using or permitting others to use a number plate, with knowledge of its deformation or obliteration or change.
4. Transfer a numbers plate from one vehicle to another without approval of the Licensing authority.
5. Refraining from stopping in the event of occurrence of an accident, by or against, resulting in damage to persons, without acceptable excuse.
6. Driving or attempting to driving a vehicle on the road while under the effect of alcoholic drinks or anesthetic substances and the like.
Earlier this year, Dubai Traffic Prosecution announced that as many as 670 cases were registered against motorists driving under the influence of alcohol in 2020, down from 1,080 in 2019.
According to official data, 38 drivers were faced with charges of endangering the lives of other road users and 17 motorists were charged with causing serious injuries to others.
