When an intoxicated driver causes a serious crash, responsibility may not always stop with the person behind the wheel. If a bar continued selling alcohol to a customer who was already visibly impaired, the business may also face liability.
For people injured in Ohio, these cases can provide an additional avenue for pursuing compensation when a driver’s insurance is not enough to cover an injury victim’s losses. However, the state places specific limits on when an alcohol-serving establishment can be held responsible. This makes the evidence surrounding the driver’s time at the bar in question very important.
When can an Ohio bar be held responsible?
Ohio’s Dram Shop Act addresses when a liquor permit holder may be liable for injuries caused by an intoxicated person. For a crash occurring away from the establishment, an injured person must prove the establishment or one of its employees knowingly sold alcohol to a noticeably intoxicated person and that the person’s intoxication was a proximate cause of the resulting injury, death or property damage.
This means that simply proving the driver drank at a particular bar before getting behind the wheel is not necessarily enough.
Is the drunk driver still responsible for the accident?
Potential liability involving a bar does not erase the driver’s own responsibility. A driver who chooses to operate a vehicle while impaired may remain liable for injuries and other losses caused by the collision.
Depending on the circumstances, a claim involving an alcohol-serving establishment may provide another potential source of recovery, rather than replacing the claim against the driver.
Ohio law requires an injured party to establish a connection between the intoxication and the resulting harm when pursuing an off-premises claim against a liquor permit holder. Therefore, it is often beneficial to speak with a legal practitioner who can help establish if the facts support a claim beyond the liability in re: intoxicated driver in such cases.