-
France set to pass emergency ‘budget law’: is it good or bad for your finances?
The country will effectively be without a budget from 2025, with knock-on effects for individuals and companies
-
EasyJet announces nine new flight routes from France including to UK
A service from Bordeaux to Birmingham is among the new announcements
-
French weekend weather outlook December 14 - 15: gloomy and chilly in the north
Cloudy skies are expected to dominate in the north, but in the south temperatures will still reach double figures
French court rules margin of error for drink-driving
A margin of error must be taken into consideration in all drink-driving cases, a court in France has ruled.
The Cour de Cassation ruling means an existing but often ignored margin of error of 0.03mg/l of breath must always be taken into account.
The current drink-drive limit in France is a maximum of 0.5g of alcohol per litre of blood (0.8g in the UK) and corresponds to 0.25mg per litre of breath (0.35mg/l in the UK). From 0.25mg/l, drivers risk having their licence suspended and a €135 fine.
When over 0.40mg/l, the driver has to go to court and can face a €4,500 fine and two years in prison.
The error margin means drivers could avoid that larger fine if their test registered 0.43mg/l.
The change comes as the number of road accidents is increasing. In February, there was a rise of 22%, partly said to be linked to the destruction of speed cameras.