respoNsiBLe trAdiNG

pLedGe Never

to driNk ANd drive

Being caught driving under the influence of alcohol in South Africa is a sometimes humiliating process and it means you will need to appear in court. If you’re found guilty, you could face up to six years in jail. You could also be liable for fines of up to R120 000 and your driver’s license may be suspended. You will also have a criminal record which can have serious ramifications for the rest of your life. Worst case scenario: you could kill someone else on the road, your loved ones or yourself. According to Dr Charles Parry of the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Research Group under the Medical Research Council (MRC), 40% of drivers who die on the road have alcohol levels in excess of .08 gms/100 ml.

DJ S’bu pledging

Brandhouse’s campaign against drinking and driving, Drive Dry, brings to life the harsh realities of drunk driving in an impactful way, and encourages South Africans to make a public commitment to never drink and drive.

The campaign also encourages young people to select a designated driver before going out to socialise and make such a decision an active part of their social culture.

The first person to make the public Drive Dry pledge was TV presenter, DJ and radio personality, Sibusiso Leope, popularly known as DJ S’bu.

“No doubt, partying is part of youth culture. However, despite being illegal, and having potentially dire consequences, drunk driving also demonstrates a complete lack of respect for fellow citizens,” said DJ S’bu.

“Brandhouse remains committed to addressing the role that alcohol plays when it comes to drinking and driving. We acknowledge the need for intervention programmes and initiatives to address the issue. Drive Dry is one of the initiatives we have in place to promote the responsible use of alcohol,” says Michael Mabasa, Corporate Relations Director for Brandhouse.

Like similar campaigns such as “Pappa wag virjou” that made use of strong emotional imagery to raise awareness of drunk driving in an impactful way, the 2013 campaign makes use of shock tactics. ‘The Drive’ is designed to take consumers through a fictional social scenario with a shocking and unexpected outcome.

“We want people to experience The Drive by themselves, which contextualises drinking responsibly and aims to change the perception of ‘it won’t happen to me’ to ‘it can happen to me’,” says Mabasa. Although Drive Dry speaks to all South Africans who have access to cars and who drink alcohol socially, it targets mainly 18- to 25-year-olds who tend to be more casual about drinking and driving. “For this reason, the Facebook application is perfectly aligned with the target market that is highly active on social media. Coupled with the need to be accepted by their peers, Drive Dry reaches the target market and makes them accountable to others in a positive way”, says Mababsa. “We want them to pledge to drink and not drive or drive and not drink, via the social media platform. Each pledge is a public declaration to drink responsibly and makes consumers accountable for their actions among family and friends. “We are extremely proud of this year’s campaign because we are moving from an awareness mode to consumers playing an active role in the campaign. We will also be able to measure the success of the campaign through the number of pledges made during the course of the 2013 campaign and use this as a benchmark for future engagements with our consumers,” he added.

The new Dryver mobile app launched by Tops at Spar helps partygoers to get a taxi to take them home when they feel they’ve had one too many.

“We know and understand the effects of drinking and driving and we want to give our customers a solution; making them aware that they have a choice to be responsible,” says Tops at Spar Group Liquor Manager, Mark Robinson.

“Drinking and driving is a serious issue in our country and we feel strongly about playing our part in finding solutions to the problem. By delivering our message in a practical, fun way, that includes a call to action, we believe we are taking our responsibility seriously.”

Users can set their status to ‘Dryving or ‘Drinking’. Friends can view one another’s statuses and connect with each other before they set out for a social occasion or use Dryver when they’re already out and about. In addition, designated drivers can be agreed on in advance and this can be communicated to the Dryver Friends List.

A clever feature of the Dryver app is the Rescue Me option, which can be activated if you’re feeling a little too tipsy to contact a friend directly. Dryver will send out an SOS message with your current location to all the active Dryvers on your list. If all else fails, the Dryver taxi service tab will enable the user to find a taxi in the area, ensuring a safe trip home.

The dryver.mobi app is paired with networking and geo-location technology and is available for Apple, Android, Windows and Blackberry smartphones.

WhAt is the AcceptABLe BLood ALcohoL Limit?

The South African Road Traffic Act 93/96 has been in effect since March 1998. Whether you are driving in your home town or on roads foreign to you in a hire car, these laws are extremely important to obey. These laws are in place to help protect the community and to make sure that drunk drivers are reprimanded. • The legal blood alcohol limit in

South Africa is less than 0.05 g per 100 ml • The legal breath alcohol limit in

South Africa is less than 0.24 mg in 1000 ml of breath • In simple terms, this means that two drinks over the space of one hour will put you over the limit. It takes your body approximately one hour to process one unit of alcohol. Ideally after drinking any alcohol you should avoid getting into the driver’s seat of your car, but at least this way you can work out how long it takes for the alcohol to leave your system.