OBJECTIVES This study aimed to measure the extent to which risky drinkers identify themselves as a heavy/binge drinker and to examine if risky drinkers who identify themselves as a heavy/binge drinker experience less negative drinking-related consequences than those who do not classify themselves as a heavy/binge drinker.

METHODS Participants, who met our criterion for heavy and/or binge drinking, were asked about their drinking patterns and to describe themselves as a non-, ex-, occasional, light, social, heavy or binge drinker. Self-identified and researcher-defined (based on participants' past 12 months consumption) drinker types were compared among 4,562 participants (74% males, mean age of 43.4).

RESULTS Over half of the researcher-defined binge and heavy drinkers classified themselves as social drinkers. Researcher-defined binge and heavy drinkers who classified themselves accurately experienced more drinking-related harms than those who classified themselves as a social drinker.

CONCLUSIONS This study found that rather than using consumption-based definitions, drinkers may classify their drinking based on harms experienced, rather than their risk of harm. Health promotion campaigns aiming to prevent harms in risky drinkers should be aware that drinkers who would be considered at risk may not see themselves that way until they have experienced harm from their drinking.