GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – A warning to all French motorists, but also tourists traveling through France starting 1 July: you must have a self-check alcohol test in your car. The new French regulation, designed to cut down on alcohol-related road accidents, calls for every car to carry a valid breathalyzer, meaning the expiry date must be respected. They can be purchased in pharmacies in France or through motoring clubs, says Touring Club Suisse (TCS), and RFI points out that they are also available in French bars.

It is not yet clear if they will be sold at Swiss border posts, for after-hours drivers, but they are already on sale in Britain at ferry and tunnel boarding areas.

Drivers in France are also required to have a warning triangle and a fluorescent safety vest.

Fines for not having the breathalyzer kits, euros 11, begin only in November.

The tests required by law are the classic tube plus balloon tests that you breath into and which give you the results in two minutes. Cost: about CHF1.50 and Britain’s Air and Travel Advisory Bureau suggests you carry two kits.