Some automakers, in cooperation with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, are in the process of developing technologies that will prevent cars from being started if they detect alcohol use by their drivers. Two different technologies are being developed: a breath-based technology and a touch-based technology.
From a drivers license restoration Michigan perspective, the ramifications are significant. Assuming the technology is perfected, it would slowly end drunk driving as more of these new cars replace cars that do not have the technology. This would ultimately mean that individuals would not have to go through the Michigan drivers license restoration or Michigan drivers license appeal process to restore their license, since they would have been prevented from driving a car drunk in the first place.
Of course, questions remain as to whether this technology can actually be successfully developed. Any Michigan license lawyer that has handled cases involving Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Devices (these devices detect alcohol from breath samples given by the driver) knows that these devices can be set off by mouthwash and medications containing alcohol. Furthermore, any Michigan drivers license reinstatement lawyer receives numerous calls from individuals claiming that their interlock device is not working correctly and has malfunctioned. Will automakers be willing to put this technology in their cars if the technology has the potential for malfunctioning and leaving someone stranded? Would automakers be liable if someone was injured as a result of a malfunction?