BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Drivers in New York will now lose their license after four drug-or-alcohol-related convictions or incidents. This takes effect on Friday, January 3.
“At some point we have to say, ‘enough is enough.’ When someone is repeatedly convicted of driving under the influence, they need to be permanently removed from our roadways, and a ‘forfeit after four’ policy significantly increases our ability to do just that,” said Mark J.F. Schroeder, Commissioner of the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles and Chair of the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee. “This law will appropriately take away the driving privileges of those who unfairly put everyone else on New York’s roads at greater risk.”
Previously, drivers would lose their driving privileges after five drug-or-alcohol-related convictions or incidents.
The new regulations also allow for permanent license denial after three alcohol-or-drug-related driving convictions plus one or more other serious driving offenses.
According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, drivers with prior drug-or-alcohol-related offenses are more likely to be repeat offenders.
