DUI in Tennessee: the law, the limits and the device
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Tennessee calls it DUI — driving under the influence, and you will see drunk driving used for the same offense. What follows is what this state sets, taken from its own published rules rather than from a national summary.
What Tennessee law actually requires
Tennessee runs the program through the court: you need an Order for Restricted Driver License signed by a judge before any provider will fit the device, plus SR-22 insurance. The order is also what the provider uses to calculate how long you serve, so the paperwork sets the clock.
- First offense: Set by the court order for a restricted license (form ORDL signed by the judge), which the provider uses to calculate your time in the program
- Lockout threshold: Set by the preset limit in the certified device: the state defines it as blocking the vehicle at or above that reading
- Program run by: The sentencing court, with the restricted license issued by TN Department of Safety
Source: www.tn.gov, checked 2026-08-23
DUI vs DUI in Tennessee
In Tennessee there is one offense and one label. If you have seen DWI, OWI or OVI used elsewhere, that is another state’s vocabulary for the same conduct — nothing about the seriousness changes when you cross a state line, only the letters on the paperwork.
Whatever it is called, the licensing consequence is the same shape: a suspension, then the device as the condition of driving again. All six abbreviations, side by side →
Can you get a DUI on a bike or a horse in Tennessee?
It turns on one word in the statute. Where the law says “vehicle”, no engine is required and the charge can reach a bicycle, a horse or a mobility scooter. Where it says “motor vehicle”, the analysis is different. This is decided by your state’s own wording, not by national custom, and it is the first thing to check before assuming a bike ride home is safe.
How often this happens in Tennessee
Federal crash records show the scale the state is legislating against, and how it compares with the country.
Cases are heard where the stop happened, and volume shapes local practice. These TN counties record the most:
Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System, 2020–2022. Counts crashes where police recorded that a driver had been drinking, which is narrower than the federal 0.08 measure and therefore understates the real figure. Tennessee runs at or below the national share.
What it costs to get driving again in Tennessee
Tennessee is one of the few states that publishes what a provider may charge, so a quote here is checkable against the regulation rather than against another quote.
The two clocks in Tennessee
The court case and the licensing case run separately. The licensing side moves first, and in the strictest states the window to request a hearing is measured in days — it runs whether or not you have hired anyone.
Tennessee cities
The county that hears your case is set by where the stop happened, and local practice differs across the state.
DUI questions in Tennessee
Is it called DUI or DUI in Tennessee?
Tennessee uses DUI — driving under the influence. You will also see drunk driving used for the same thing. The label follows the state, not the seriousness of what happened, so paperwork from elsewhere may say something different about identical conduct.
What is the legal limit in Tennessee?
0.08% for drivers 21 and over, as in every state except Utah, which sits at 0.05%. Below the limit you can still be charged if an officer documents impairment. The reading that triggers the interlock here is a separate number: Set by the preset limit in the certified device: the state defines it as blocking the vehicle at or above that reading
How long does the interlock stay on after a first offense in Tennessee?
Set by the court order for a restricted license (form ORDL signed by the judge), which the provider uses to calculate your time in the program The program is run by The sentencing court, with the restricted license issued by TN Department of Safety.
Can you get a DUI on a horse or a bicycle in Tennessee?
The answer is in whether the statute says “vehicle” or “motor vehicle”. Where it says vehicle, no engine is needed and the charge can reach a bike or a horse; where it says motor vehicle, it cannot. This is one of the most searched questions in the whole subject and one of the most confidently answered wrongly — the wording of your own state decides it.
A first DUI here →A second DUI here →When a DUI is a felony in Tennessee →
When a charge becomes a felony → The test and the refusal → SR-22 and FR-44 →
Attorney advertising. InterlockDeviceNearMe is not a law firm, does not practice law, and does not give legal advice. Nothing here creates an attorney-client relationship. Requesting a consultation connects you with an independent attorney or a legal referral service, who decide separately whether to take your case. Case outcomes depend on facts we do not know, and no result is ever promised. Deadlines in DUI cases are short and vary by state — speak to a licensed attorney in your state before relying on anything you read here.