Claim Answers: Can a passenger receive injury compensation for a car crash when the driver is drunk?

Injured Passenger in Car Crash Where Car Driver was Drunk
Eoin P. Campbell
Eoin P. Campbell, LL.B., Solicitor
Editor in Chief

Question:

I was injured in a car crash while a passenger in a car that crashed. The driver was legally drunk and is facing charges.

The insurance company of the driver has said that the fact that the driver legally drunk at the time of the accident means that we are responsible for our own injuries.

Answer:

While there is some level of contributory negligence, you are certainly entitled to injury compensation.

A key consideration is whether you had prior knowledge that the driver had consumed alcohol. The level of intoxication is also a factor in determining your level of contributory negligence because it might help determine if the driver might have been visibly drunk. The amount of injury compensation will be determined in the normal way and then a percentage reduction will be applied depending on the level of contributory negligence.

The Supreme Court recently ruled that a man who travelled in a car driven by another man whom he knew had several alcoholic drinks was 35 percent liable for the head injuries suffered when the car was crashed into a wall.