Drunk Driver Has No Insurance

I’m Katelyn Holub, an attorney focusing on personal injury law in northwest Indiana.

Welcome to Personal Injury Primer, where we break down the law into simple terms, provide legal tips, and discuss personal injury law topics.

Today’s question comes from a mother calling about her daughter, who was tragically seriously injured by a drunk driver. The police reported to her that the drunk driver had no insurance and was driving a stolen car. The caller wanted to know if there was anything legally that could be done to help her seriously injured daughter.

It is always challenging to deal with a situation like that described by the caller. It is very frustrating when a wrongdoer has no insurance.

But, several factors could lead to financial recovery to help defray the expenses of the injuries and lost time from work.

The first thing an experienced attorney will do in such a situation is to investigate how the drunk driver came to be intoxicated.

Drunks are usually good at one thing: figuring out how to get ahold of alcohol and get drunk.

Over the years, we have investigated cases like these. In some, we have found a third party to hold legally responsible.

Under a narrow set of circumstances, the law permits someone injured by a drunk driver to hold the person who supplied the drunk with alcohol responsible for the harm done by the drunk.

One such case involved a woman who had been to a wedding. She had been overserved at a bar supplied by the wedding party. There was no professional bartender, and nobody monitored the amount of alcohol served to the drunk driver.

We successfully asked a jury to hold the wedding party responsible in that case. Thankfully the wedding party had the foresight to have purchased liability insurance to cover the event.

 

Another case involved a tavern. The bartender had refused to serve any additional alcohol to the drunk because he appeared intoxicated. But, the bartender is the one who served him to the point of him becoming intoxicated.

Though the man was clearly intoxicated, as the bartender admitted, nobody took the person’s keys away. Instead, the bartender watched him get in a car and drive away.

Though the cases we just outlined for you are in the minority, there is always a reason to try to figure out where the alcohol came from.

One source for finding out where the alcohol came from is often the drunk driver involved in the crash. If the drunk driver survives, they can be asked where the alcohol came from once they sober up.

Sometimes of course, where a relative gave them the alcohol, they will lie and claim a lack of knowledge. But, sometimes they are remorseful and will truthful explain where they got the alcohol.

I hope you found this information helpful. If you are a victim of someone’s carelessness, substandard medical care, a product defect, work injury, or another personal injury, please call (219) 736-9700 with your questions. You can also learn more about us by visiting our website at DavidHolubLaw.com – while there, make sure you request a copy of our book “Fighting for Truth.”