Don’t Put Drugs in the Driving Seat

Moment: Christmas

Don’t Put Drugs in the Driving Seat

THINK! are re-running the campaign this summer to warn young drivers of the serious consequences if they choose to drug drive.   

21,791 people were convicted of drug driving offences in England and Wales in 2025, a number that has been steadily rising over the last 10 years*. Young men are particularly at risk, with around 90% of drivers impaired by drugs in collisions being male, and 4 in 10 aged between 17 and 29. 

Overconfidence and a tendency to underestimate the risks are widespread: 41% of young men believe it is OK to drive after taking drugs if they ‘feel fine’, while 51% report knowing someone who drives after using drugs. 

THINK!’s ‘Don’t Put Drugs in the Driving Seat’ campaign launched in 2025 and is now live again for the summer, reminding young drivers of the risks and the life-changing consequences they can face if they choose to drug drive. Alongside existing materials, the summer campaign includes a range of new animated and statistic-led assets to help drive further awareness and action amongst those most at risk. 

The creative uses the driving seat as a constant setting, with a rotating camera effect revealing how one poor decision can lead to devastating consequences. The assets highlight the impact drug driving can have on your night, your life and your future, as well as the risk of injuring yourself or others – consequences that research shows resonate strongly with this audience. 

Running throughout July and August 2026, the campaign will be delivered across a broad range of high-impact channels, including cinema, out of home advertising, social media, online video and digital audio, ensuring national reach and resonance. 

To maximise impact, the campaign will also target drug driving hotspots at a time of increased travel, socialising and recreational drug use as people are out and about enjoying festival season and the long, warm summer nights.  

All assets are available for download and use by stakeholders for free organic use . For information on using the assets through paid media channels, please contact ThinkCampaign@dft.gov.uk. 

Find out more about our audience-facing advice and information. 

Follow the campaign on X, Facebook and Instagram to discover more and share. 

To download any of the videos below, select your chosen video, which will open the video player. Click on the Vimeo logo in the bottom right of the player to access our Vimeo page and download directly.  

*MoJ criminal justice statistics: December 2025 

^ Analysis of STATS19 data for collisions with ‘impaired by drugs’ as a contributory factor, 2018-2022 data. 

Drink a little, risk a lot

In 2022, an estimated 1,920 people were killed or seriously injured in collisions where drink driving was a factor. Young men are over-represented in drink drive casualties, yet are less likely than the general population to say that drink driving is risky.

To tackle this, the THINK! ‘Drink a little, risk a lot’ campaign highlights the consequences of even having one or two drinks before driving.

50% of young male drivers say they intend to be sensible but often get carried away when socialising, putting themselves at risk. The campaign challenges young male drivers’ perceptions around personal limits, by raising awareness that even a little bit of alcohol can put you and your licence at risk.

The creative uses eye-catching illustrations and animations that show a driving licence disappearing into a pint of beer. Campaign assets highlight the impact licence loss can have on your freedom, social life, even your job, as well as the risk of injuring yourself or others, or worse – consequences that research shows resonate strongly with our audience.  

Targeted assets also highlight Police enforcement activity, reinforcing the risk of licence loss. 

The partner-led platform, THINK! 0%, continues to encourage drivers to always opt for 0% over an alcoholic drink if they’re getting behind the wheel.

Assets are available to download below and are free for organic use. For information on using the assets through paid media channels please contact ThinkCampaign@dft.gov.uk

Follow the campaign on X, Facebook and Instagram to discover more and share.

To download any of the videos below, select your chosen video, which will bring up the video player. Click on the ‘Vimeo’ logo in the bottom right of the video player and head to our Vimeo page, where you can download directly.

Mates matter

Our campaign is calling on friends to do what they do best – look out for each other.

We’re specifically calling for mates to intervene and stop their mates when they are tempted to drink driving.

Young men are heavily over-represented in drink drive related accidents. In 2016, 280 young men aged 16-24 were killed or seriously injured due to drink driving in Great Britain.