Approximately 17,000 individuals are killed in alcohol-related car crashes in the United States every year. Moreover, 17 percent of U.S. drivers reported that they drove after drinking in 2006. This study compares the deterrent effects of two types of license suspension laws on offenders caught driving while impaired (DWI). Long-term follow-up data were studied from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System across 46 states between January 1976 and December 2002. The researchers found laws that imposed a license suspension immediately after an offense was committed reduced the numbers of alcohol-related fatal car accidents by 5 percent, which could amount to at least 800 lives saved annually. The law had the same effect on drinking drivers whether they were below or above the legal limit for blood alcohol concentration. In contrast, laws that mandated license suspension penalties only after a court conviction for driving under the influence were not an effective deterrent. These results support the theory that timing matters. Delayed penalties appear to have little effect on changing or shaping behavior while penalties imposed immediately after an offense, even if they are more modest, have a greater impact and can save lives. This theory-based principal supported by these results may be applied to other areas of alcohol control and other laws.