Drunk Driver

by karla

Hi,

Last night a 20yr old drunk driver smashed my parked car and its a Nissan skyline and i have had a quote of 11,000 to fix it and the car is only worth that much.

I have no insurance but he does I think it was 3rd party + property damage his car is a total loss but am I eligible to get any money if he was drunk?

Thank you

Answer

Hello Karla,

I am sorry to hear about the accident. Most like yes, however it depends on what the ‘drunk’ driver auto police says.

Most of the U.S. auto polices cover drivers under the influence of alcohol (although that is changing). The policies that have these exclusions must show that the person was indeed under the influence (i.e. a breathalyzer test). If the test does not exist, then it is possible that the insurance company cannot prove “alcohol.”

You can recover against the drunk driver directly, but there will be a question of coverage by the insurance company.

Good Luck

Hector