Car insurance customers may face breathalysers in their own vehicles

There are many different circumstances in which people need to make use of cheap short term car insurance. For example, they might be keen to test drive a vehicle or they may require the use of a friend or family member's car while they are away on holiday. Accessing temporary car insurance cover is now straightforward and consumers can arrange it online.

However, if proposals put forward by one man are taken up, there may be another hurdle facing road users. Before they can switch on the engine and drive off in vehicles, individuals might have to perform breath tests.

The government's former chief drugs advisor David Nutt, who is president of the British Neuroscience Association and a professor at Imperial College, London, has suggested that alcohol sensors should be installed in vehicles to cut drink-related road deaths.

Drivers would have to breathe into the devices before starting their cars to test they were not over the limit.

Speaking to the BBC, Professor Nut noted that some countries already use in-car breathalysers known as ignition interlock devices to ensure people who have been convicted of drink driving do not take to the wheel when inebriated again.

However, this idea could be taken further, he pointed out. The expert remarked: "You could potentially have it so that was true of all cars - everybody would have to breathe in [to the device] before they were able to drive away."

He added: "You hear about terrible accidents when four or five young people die simultaneously in the one car because the driver's been drunk. It could save a lot of lives."

However, customers of cheap short term car insurance may be interested to note that the Department for Transport revealed it has no plans to install in-car tests like this in cars at present.

Meanwhile, users of temporary car insurance cover could also benefit from being aware that in Great Britain, the current legal limit for drivers is 35 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath.