Can I drink in the car if I’m a passenger? Will we get pulled over? Here’s the law in WA

The Washington State Patrol and local police departments are working to crack down on dangerous driving, especially in the summer.

Since 2018, the highest consecutive 90-day stretch for traffic related fatalities has fallen across June, July and August, according to the State Patrol. The WTSC says law enforcement responds to an average of 65 fatalities each month during the summer, and more than 1,200 lives have been lost in fatal summer crashes each year since 2018.

Patrols will be looking for dangerous behaviors like speeding and drunk driving.

However, what if you’re found drinking alcohol in a car, but your driver has not had a drop? How can you expect a Washington State trooper to react? Can you get the car pulled over for drinking in the passenger seat?

Here’s what the law says.

Washington open container laws

The Revised Code of Washington states it is a traffic infraction to drink alcohol in a vehicle on the highway. Even if you aren’t actively drinking, it’s still illegal. You cannot have an open container with an alcoholic beverage in a vehicle on Washington highways.

What counts as an open container? The state law describes it as “a bottle, can, or other receptacle containing an alcoholic beverage if the container has been opened or a seal broken or the contents partially removed.”

The primary reason passengers cannot drink is to prevent driver’s access. If a passenger has an open container, they can easily pass it to the driver. Additionally, law enforcement would have no way of knowing if the driver was drinking, and simply passed the container to a passenger.

Passengers with an open container will be responsible for this infraction, not the driver. It is also a primary violation, meaning you can get pulled over for open containers. While troopers are on patrol over Labor Day weekend, they will pull over cars exhibiting concerning behaviors, WSP Trooper Chris Thorson previously stated in an interview.

Concerning behaviors include speed, following too closely, as well as impaired and distracted driving. But other infractions, like passengers drinking or smoking in the car, are considered concerning as well.

Additionally, you cannot keep an open container in the car unless it is kept somewhere not normally occupied by passengers, like the trunk. This means opened drinks cannot be kept in the glove or utility compartment “for later.” This infraction falls on the registered owner of the car, or the driver if the registered owner is not present.

It is an additional infraction to try and disguise an alcoholic beverage in order to get around this state code.

These traffic infractions come with a fine of $145.

If minors are involved in any of the aforementioned infractions, there is potential for an additional charge for a Minor in Possession of Alcohol. This is assessed on a case-by-case basis, according to Thorson.

WA open container law exceptions

There are some exceptions to this, however. The code does not apply for open containers:

• In public services commercially chartered for group use, like a party bus

• In the living quarters of motors homes or campers

• With passengers in a licensed for-hire vehicle (not rideshares), like a limousine

• When a privately-owned vehicle is driven by a licensed employee under normal work conditions, like a cart girl

Counties within Washington may have their own provisions regarding open containers on public and private roads.