[Effect of alcohol as a cause of fatal traffic accidents: are official figures correct?].

Starting point is the question whether in the official records of fatal road accidents driving while intoxicated is adequately taken into account as a cause. A former investigation with accident data of 1976 yielded a considerable number of undetected and not registered cases. On the basis of the fatal road accidents of the Saarland region for the years 1988, 1989 and 1990 the former results could be confirmed on the whole. Only with 25 per cent of all persons involved in a fatal accident a breath or blood test for checking alcoholic impairment had been arranged. The assumption is well substantiated that the remaining 75 per cent include many impaired persons and that not only every fifth victim of traffic accidents is a result of alcoholic impairment but about 40 per cent. Proposals are made for getting in the future more reliable counts and a better basis for fighting against DWI-offences.