A drunk driving crash can leave you facing painful injuries, mounting bills, and uncertainty about what comes next. In New Jersey, you may have the right to seek payment for medical expenses, lost income, and pain and suffering. Depending on how the crash happened, more than one party may be responsible.
Read on to learn about your legal rights and options after a drunk driving crash.
If your policy includes the verbal threshold, it generally limits when you can sue for pain and suffering. The driver’s intoxication does not, by itself, remove that limit. In other words, the verbal threshold can still affect a claim against a drunk driver. When it applies, your injuries must meet a category listed in N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a), such as a permanent injury or a displaced fracture, to recover noneconomic damages.
Under N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.5(b), a driver convicted of or pleading guilty to DWI in connection with the crash generally cannot bring an injury claim against another motorist. However, that restriction does not necessarily prevent the driver from bringing a claim against a negligent alcohol server. These different rules explain why a drunk driving case requires a careful review of each party’s rights and responsibilities.
The impaired driver is not always the only party at fault. Under the New Jersey Licensed Alcoholic Beverage Server Fair Liability Act, N.J.S.A. 2A:22A-5, a licensed bar, restaurant, or other alcohol server may share liability if it served a visibly intoxicated person, that service caused the injury, and the harm was foreseeable. A private social host may also face liability under N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.6 for knowingly serving a visibly intoxicated adult under circumstances that create an unreasonable risk of foreseeable harm, failing to use reasonable care, and contributing to a crash caused by that guest.
These laws can hold alcohol providers responsible for their part in the harm. A business may carry commercial insurance with higher limits than the driver’s policy, providing another possible source of recovery when that coverage is insufficient. Comparative negligence rules can divide fault among the responsible parties. Proving the server’s role often depends on gathering evidence before receipts and surveillance footage are lost.
Ordinary negligence does not support punitive damages in New Jersey, but drunk driving may. Under N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.12, these damages require clear and convincing evidence of actual malice or a wanton and willful disregard for others. The evidence must show that the driver intended to cause harm or knowingly ignored a serious risk to others. Punitive damages are not automatic. They must be requested in the lawsuit and supported by evidence that meets the legal standard.
A separate trial phase is required if the defendant requests it. Under N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.14, they are generally capped at five times the defendant’s compensatory liability or $350,000, whichever is greater. That statutory cap does not apply when the defendant has been convicted of DWI. The court still reviews whether the award is reasonable and justified by the facts of the case.
A strong claim depends on evidence gathered early. The police report, any DWI charges, breath or blood test results, and the officer’s observations can help establish impairment. If a bar or restaurant may be responsible, receipts, surveillance footage, and server statements can help show whether it continued serving a visibly intoxicated customer. The driver’s statements and social media posts from around the time of the crash may provide useful details. Independent witness accounts, photographs, and physical evidence can also help explain what happened.
Some records may be lost or deleted unless someone acts to preserve them. Sending a prompt written request asking a bar to preserve its surveillance footage can protect valuable evidence, especially if its recording system automatically deletes or records over older video.
The Law Offices of Sander Budanitsky, L.L.C. looks into who may be responsible for the crash and works quickly to preserve evidence before it is lost. Attorney Sander Budanitsky has represented injured New Jersey clients since 1996 and knows the issues that can arise in drunk driving claims.
We offer free consultations, and you pay no attorney’s fee unless we recover compensation for you. Call us at (908) 241-3445 to discuss what happened and learn how we can help.
It depends. The driver’s intoxication does not automatically remove the verbal threshold. If that threshold applies, your injuries must meet one of the categories in the law. If your policy has the no limitation on lawsuit option, you generally do not need to meet that threshold.
Yes. Under the dram shop law, a licensed alcohol server may share liability if it served a visibly intoxicated person, that service caused the injury, and the harm was foreseeable.
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