(626) 584-5744
Getting hit by a drunk driver feels different from an ordinary crash. It was not a mistake or a bad moment. Someone chose to drink and drive. You are the one paying for it, with a wrecked car and an injured body. In the days after, you will hear about the criminal case against the driver. What almost no one tells you is that the criminal case is not the one that pays your bills. A separate claim does that, and it may be worth more than you think.
The criminal case and your claim are two different roads
When a drunk driver hurts someone, two things happen. They run on separate tracks. The state files criminal charges to punish the driver, with fines, a license suspension, maybe jail. That case belongs to the government, not to you. Even if the driver is convicted, none of those penalties put a dollar in your pocket.
Your money comes from the other road, a civil claim. This is where you seek payment for your medical bills and lost wages. It also covers your damaged car and the pain you have gone through. You can bring that claim whether the criminal case ends in a conviction, a plea, or nothing at all.
A conviction can actually help you
Here is where the two roads cross in your favor. If the driver is convicted of a DUI, or even just cited, that record is strong proof in your civil claim. It helps show the driver was at fault, which is often the hardest thing to prove in a normal crash. In a drunk driving case, that piece is frequently handed to you.
So while the criminal case will not pay you, it can make your own claim much easier to win. A good lawyer uses the police report and the DUI record as building blocks for your case.
You may be owed more than your bills
Most crash claims cover what you lost, such as bills and lost wages. A drunk driving case can go further. Because the driver did something reckless on purpose, California may allow punitive damages, which are extra money meant to punish that choice and warn others off it. Ordinary fender-benders do not open that door. Drunk driving cases sometimes do.
There may also be another party to look at. Say a bar or restaurant kept serving someone who was clearly drunk, then handed them their keys. California’s dram shop rules can, in some cases, place part of the blame on that business too.
What to do after the crash
Call the police and make sure a report is written, because that report often notes signs the other driver was impaired. Get medical care right away and describe every symptom. Take photos of the wrecked cars and of your own injuries. Get the names and numbers of any witnesses, since a bystander who saw the driver stumble can matter later.
And hold off on talking to the driver’s insurance company on a recorded line until you have advice. Their goal is to settle fast and cheap. They often move before you know the full extent of your injuries or the real value of your claim.
Get your case looked at early
California gives you two years from the crash to file a civil claim, but the evidence around a DUI moves quickly through the system. The sooner your side is documented, the more you can recover. If a drunk driver hurt you anywhere in Pasadena or Los Angeles, find out what your claim is really worth. McNally Law has stood up for injured people across the area for years, and the first call is free. Call (626) 584-5744 to talk about what happened.
