Alcohol, Drugs, Medication, Fatigue and Fitness to Drive
The legal limits
Belgium's general alcohol limit is 0.5 g per litre of blood (0.22 mg per litre of breath). Novice drivers - those who have held a licence for less than two years - face a stricter limit of 0.2 g per litre of blood, effectively zero tolerance. Professional drivers are also held to the lower limit.
Penalties escalate sharply above the limit, and refusal to take a breath test is treated seriously. Alcohol is eliminated slowly - roughly one standard drink per hour - and coffee, food or fresh air do not speed this up.
Drugs and medication. Driving under the influence of illegal drugs is prohibited. Many prescription medicines - sedatives, some antihistamines, strong painkillers - impair driving. Read the leaflet and ask your doctor or pharmacist. A warning pictogram on the packaging signals a risk.
Fatigue and illness. Fatigue slows reaction time and causes micro-sleeps. Warning signs include yawning, heavy eyelids, drifting and missing signs. The only real remedy is stopping to rest or sleep; loud music and open windows only mask it briefly. Do not drive with a condition that impairs control or concentration, and report conditions that must be declared to the licensing authority.
Traps:
- The novice limit applies for two years from the date the licence was obtained, not from passing the test date you remember.
- "One beer is fine" questions test the novice limit, where it often is not.
- A prescription label does not make a medicine safe to drive on.
Rule of thumb: if you have to ask whether you are fit to drive, you are not.
Worked example: a novice driver has one beer and feels fine. The applicable limit is 0.2 g/l, so even that may put them over the threshold.