SafeRoads Alberta

An IRS Fail is the most common roadside sanction issued under the SafeRoads Alberta initiative.

An IRS Fail is issued when a police officer has reasonable grounds to believe that:

1. The driver’s ability to operate a motor vehicle was impaired, to any degree, by alcohol or drug or both,
2. The driver has a blood alcohol level that equals or exceeds 80 milligrams in 100 milliliters of blood within 2 hours after ceasing to operate a motor vehicle,
3. The driver has a blood alcohol concentration and blood drug concentration that equals or exceeds the blood alcohol and blood drug concentration under Criminal Code of Canada regulations, or
4. The driver failed or refused to comply with a breathalyzer or blood demand with knowledge the demand was made and without a reasonable excuse to fail or refuse to comply with the demand.

The consequences for a first IRS Fail are:

1. The driver is immediately suspended from driving:
   1. for 90 days, and
   2. upon expiration of the 90 days, for a further 12 months,
2. The driver’s vehicle is seized for 30 days,
3. A fine of $1000 plus a victim fine surcharge, and
4. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

For a first IRS fail, the driver must operate their vehicle with an ignition interlock device (blow box) installed in their vehicle after the 90-day suspension expires. The blow box must be installed for the entire 12 month suspension period. A driver cannot get their license back until they complete their 12-month suspension with the blow box installed.

The consequences for a second IRS Fail are:

1. The driver is immediately suspended from driving:
   1. for 90 days, and
   2. upon expiration of the 90 days, for a further 36 months,
2. The driver’s vehicle is seized for 30 days,
3. A fine of $2000 plus a victim fine surcharge, and
4. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

For a second IRS fail, the driver must operate their vehicle with an ignition interlock device (blow box) installed in their vehicle after the 90-day suspension expires. The blow box must be installed for the entire 36 month suspension period. A driver cannot get their license back until they complete their 36-month suspension with the blow box installed.

The consequences of a third IRS Fail are:

1. The driver is immediately suspended from driving:
   1. for 90 days, and
   2. Upon expiration of the 90 days, for life,
2. The driver’s vehicle is seized for 30 days,
3. A fine of $2000 plus a victim fine surcharge, and
4. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

For a third IRS fail, the driver must operate their vehicle with an ignition interlock device (blow box) installed in their vehicle after the 90-day suspension expires. The blow box must be installed for the entire lifetime suspension period.

The driver is only eligible for a blow box complete a mandatory education program. It is important to remember that you cannot drive without a blow box in your vehicle and without being issued your restricted driver’s license.

An IRS 24-hour suspends your license for 24 hours and gives the police the power to seize your vehicle for 24 hours. An IRS 24-hour is issued when a police officer has reasonable grounds to suspect the driver has:

1. a medical or physical condition that affects their ability to drive, or
2. has consumed alcohol or drugs that has affected their physical or mental ability to drive.

A 24-hour IRS license suspension expires 24 hours from the time the Notice of Administrative Penalty (NAP) was issued.

An IRS Novice applies to driver’s who have a learner’s driver’s license or a probationary driver’s license.

An IRS Novice is issued when a police officer has a reasonable suspicion that the driver of a motor vehicle has any alcohol or drugs in their body.

The consequences of an IRS Novice are:

1. The novice driver is immediately suspended from driving for 30 days,
2. The novice driver’s vehicle is seized for 7 days,
3. They are liable for a fine of $200 plus a victim surcharge fee, and
4. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

Since there are other potential license reinstatement conditions, you may not be eligible to drive and may still be suspended after the 30-day period until these conditions are met.

An IRS Commercial issued when a police officer has reasonable grounds to believe:

1. The driver was operating a commercial vehicle at the time, and
2. At the time of operating the commercial vehicle, had any alcohol or drug in their body.

The consequences for a first IRS Commercial are:

1. The driver is immediately suspended from driving for 3 days,
2. A fine of $300 plus a victim fine surcharge, and
3. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

The consequences for a second IRS Commercial are:

1. The driver is immediately suspended from driving for 15 days,
2. A fine of $600 plus a victim fine surcharge, and
3. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

The consequences of a third IRS Commercial are:

1. The driver is immediately suspended from driving for 30 days,
2. A fine of $1200 plus a victim fine surcharge, and
3. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

Since there are other potential license reinstatement conditions, you may not be eligible to drive and may still be suspended after the expiration of the suspension period until these conditions are met.

An IRS Warn is issued when a police or peace officer has reasonable grounds to believe the driver of a motor vehicle has a blood alcohol level equal to or exceeding 50 milligrams in 100 milliliters of blood.

The consequences for a first IRS Warn are:

1. The driver is immediately suspended from driving for 3 days,
2. The driver’s vehicle is seized for 3 days,
3. A fine of $300 plus a victim fine surcharge, and
4. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

The consequences for a second IRS Warn are:

1. The driver is immediately suspended from driving for 15 days,
2. The driver’s vehicle is seized for 15 days,
3. A fine of $600 plus a victim fine surcharge, and
4. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

The consequences of a third IRS Warn are:

1. The driver is immediately suspended from driving for 30 days,
2. The driver’s vehicle is seized for 7 days,
3. A fine of $1200 plus a victim fine surcharge, and
4. Other potential license reinstatement conditions.

Since there are other potential license reinstatement conditions, you may not be eligible to drive and may still be suspended after the expiration of the suspension period until these conditions are met.

A further consequence for any IRS driving suspension is the impact it has on your insurance rates, as it is recorded on your driving record.