Like most drivers, if I ever drive through a city centre at night or any roads near local bars where it is clear people have been drinking I am extremely careful. I’ll drive below the speed limit and check to see whether any of them are likely to run out in front of my car. Becoming involved in an accident with a pedestrian is a driver’s worst nightmare.
Pedestrians are extremely vulnerable to motor vehicles and if they become involved in an accident with one, they can suffer from extreme injuries depending upon the speed of the vehicle.
If you’re on a night out or have been drinking and become involved in an accident that you believe wasn’t your fault there are a few ways a court would look at this. They would look at where the accident took place so would consider if on the road whether it was at a pedestrian crossing or not. If so they would look at whether the pedestrian just walked out or whether the vehicle failed to pay due care and attention.
In some accidents a court will issue a percentage of contributory negligence if the pedestrian just walked out. Who holds most percentage of contributory negligence is completely up to the judge who assesses the accident. The court will need look at all the facts of the accident and look at how the claimants intoxication contributed to their injuries.
An example of this is given in the Guide to RTA (Road Traffic Accidents) Liability:
In Lunt v Khelifa the pedestrian who stumbled out into the road three times over the legal drive limit, was held one-third liable for the impact of their injuries.
If you have been drinking when you become involved in a car accident if it wasn’t your fault you may still be able to make a compensation claim. If taken to hospital for your injuries medics may need to find out how much your body was intoxicated at the time. The court will then decide based on this if you showed contributory negligence.
