Open containers, under-21 rules and related offenses
A 3-minute lesson from the Illinois course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.
DUI law reaches beyond the driver's own blood alcohol. It covers open alcohol in the car, parents who let minors drink, lending your car to someone impaired, and a zero-tolerance rule for anyone under 21.
Know the rule
It is illegal for anyone to drink alcohol in a vehicle. The driver and passengers may be ticketed.
It is illegal to operate a motorboat under the influence. After a motorboat crash with injuries or death, refusing testing, or a test showing .08 BAC, illegal THC levels or unlawful drugs, can cost you your driving privileges.
A parent or guardian may not let anyone under 21 drink alcohol, or fail to control access to alcohol on property they control, including a vehicle or watercraft. If a death or injury results, they may face criminal penalties.
A driver suspended or revoked for those offenses may not drive in ANY state. An arrest in another state is reported to the Illinois Secretary of State.
It is illegal to let someone drive your vehicle if you know that person is under the influence. Providing alcohol to a person under 21 can bring a fine, jail and a license suspension.
Under-21 alcohol offenses (illegal consumption, purchase, possession, or receiving alcohol as a gift) cost you your driving privileges whether or not you were driving at the time.
If your license was suspended before age 21, you must complete a driver remedial education course, and you may have to take the complete license exam again.
An 18-year-old has one beer, waits an hour and drives. Stopped, they test above 0.00. That's a zero-tolerance violation: at least a 3-month suspension, even though they're far below .08.
Check your understanding
Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.
It is illegal to drink alcohol in a vehicle in Illinois, even if the driver's BAC stays under the legal limit.
True
False
Answer: True
Illinois' open-container law bans drinking in a vehicle regardless of BAC.