
How Does Remote Alcohol Monitoring Help Families ?
5 min read
Key Takeaways
- Remote alcohol monitoring provides real-time, verifiable alcohol testing through discreet, GPS-enabled devices.
- It plays a critical role in family law and custody cases by offering objective evidence and building trust.
- Devices like Keepr™ support both voluntary and court-ordered testing, helping encourage accountability.
Remote alcohol monitoring tracks a person’s alcohol usage and location via GPS. This technology has existed for decades, and recent advancements have made it easier to use, less expensive, and more reliable.
Real-time alcohol monitoring devices are also being increasingly used in family law. If you’re going through a separation, divorce, or child custody dispute, remote alcohol monitoring may be an important tool to help build trust, support conflict resolution, and provide peace of mind for all parties. So, to help you take the next step for your family, let’s dive in and cover what you need to know about remote alcohol monitoring.
The Importance of Remote Alcohol Monitoring
Remote alcohol monitoring is a valuable tool because it allows families to conduct reliable and real-time alcohol testing in a user-friendly and non-invasive way. Using this tool can help support recovery and sobriety, and protect families, children, and the general public.
What Is a Remote Alcohol Monitoring Device?
A remote alcohol monitoring device is a small and discreet breathalyzer that audits breath alcohol concentration (BrAC). Modern hand-held breath alcohol testing devices combine a breathalyzer and an app. This technology allows you to record and report test results in real time from anywhere.
Electronic monitoring devices use identity verification and GPS location to confirm the results belong to the person being tested. These devices then send verifiable results via email, text, or mobile app notifications to authorized contacts. This can be done on demand or according to court-ordered testing schedules.
Whether you need continuous alcohol monitoring or periodic testing, you can adapt the monitoring solutions according to your personal situation.
How Accurate Are Remote Alcohol Monitoring Systems?
Remote alcohol monitoring devices like Keepr use a fuel cell sensor to detect and measure alcohol in a person’s breath. This is one of the most accurate and reliable methods for breath alcohol testing. Additionally, Keepr uses multiple sensors to detect tampering attempts at both the inlet and outlet, verifying the validity of each sample.
When a person exhales into the device, the platinum-coated electrodes in the fuel cell create an electrochemical reaction with ethanol (alcohol) in the breath. When this happens, the reaction creates an electric current which is then measured to calculate the person's breath alcohol concentration.
Fuel cell-based testing provides reliable BrAC readings, even at low levels. Compared to other types of sensors, it’s also less likely to be affected by other substances, like acetone or mouthwash.
Not sure which remote alcohol monitoring device to use?
Compare remote alcohol monitoring solutions by cost, features, and accuracy to find the right product and brand for you.
Benefits of Remote Alcohol Monitoring
There are many benefits to remote alcohol monitoring, especially with the improved functionality of state-of-the-art models and brands like Keepr.
Enhanced Accountability
Whether you’re concerned about your child’s safety due to a co-parent’s alcohol use, need to prove your sobriety for custody proceedings, or must do court-mandated testing after a DUI, remote alcohol monitoring keeps everyone on track. These solutions provide a simple and cost-effective way to monitor alcohol use and provide proof of sobriety.
Remote alcohol monitoring, like with a Keepr device, provides real-time results wherever you are. And, with a long battery life, built-in Bluetooth™, and compatibility with Android and iOS, there’s less room for error and missed tests. Parties on both sides can request and deliver accurate test results from anywhere with an internet or Wi-Fi connection.
Reliable Data Collection
Fuel cell technology is trusted in private and public sectors to provide accurate and precise BrAC results, typically within 0.005 BrAC within the device's operating range. Keepr devices also capture real-time photos for identity verification while being used, along with the use of GPS. Combined, these factors help provide accurate and reliable data you can count on for personal peace of mind and for legal proceedings.
Empowered Substance Abuse Management
Some people think remote alcohol monitoring is only used for court-mandated testing and community corrections. Yet it is also used voluntarily to provide peace of mind. For individuals struggling with alcohol abuse, it can provide a sense of control and ownership over their sobriety.
Since the Keepr device is pocket-sized, users can discreetly conduct on-demand or scheduled breath tests. This convenience increases accountability and helps to build trust in relationships that may have been affected by substance abuse.
Due to these benefits, remote alcohol monitoring is often incorporated into sobriety programs. This can help keep people accountable while they feel empowered and in control of their recovery journey.
Concerned about your drinking or a loved one’s alcohol use?
There are many online resources available to help you learn more about Alcohol Use Disorder and find tools to check and manage your alcohol use.
Breath Alcohol Testing Applications in Legal Contexts
Remote alcohol monitoring devices can be extremely useful in many different aspects of legal disputes and court proceedings.
Attorneys can use the data to make a case for more lenient sentencing, while court officials can use random and scheduled testing to monitor and improve compliance.
Alcohol monitoring solutions are also widely used in family law to ensure child safety as well as determine parental rights.
Child Custody Disputes
When families, lawyers, and courts negotiate co-parenting parameters or dispute child custody in family law cases, they may use alcohol monitoring and on-demand testing to obtain objective, real-time evidence of sobriety. This information helps them make safer and fairer decisions about custody, visitation rights, and parental fitness.
Remote alcohol monitoring helps families during and after child custody disputes by:
- Confirming parents are sober during visitation or parenting times
- Helping make sure children are less likely to be exposed to unsafe environments
- Providing clear and unbiased evidence for courts and decision makers
- Building trust between co-parents
- Reducing tension during legal proceedings
- Supporting recovery and increasing accountability
How Keepr Can Help
Keepr remote alcohol monitoring devices are designed to be portable, discreet, and reliable. This way you track your sobriety (or a co-parent's sobriety) anywhere and anytime.
Order your Keepr Breathalyzer and the YourKeepr Mobile App or buy a device for a loved one online now. Or, if you would prefer to speak with our helpful specialists, you can call us at 833-743-5969 or send us a message.
You can also find answers to common questions about how Keepr works, subscription costs, and more via our FAQ page.
External Sources
- https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5857179/
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2451910318301030#:~:text=Fuel%20cell%2Dbased%20breath%2Dalcohol%20sensor%20(FCBrAS)%20remains,acceptable%20accuracy%2C%20sensitivity%20and%20selectivity.
- https://www.samhsa.gov/substance-use/learn/alcohol
- https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/checkyourdrinking/index.html
- https://www.americanbar.org/groups/family_law/resources/committee-articles/prevalence-alcohol-custody-cases/