According to the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2012, over 10,000
vehicle-related fatalities involved a drunk driver. Not only were these people
liable for their actions, the establishments where they were drinking are also
susceptible to punishment for over-serving clientele who then injure a third
party.
These types of
lawsuits are not cheap, either. Well-known liquor liability cases include the
Outback Steakhouse, which was ordered to pay $39 million by an Indiana jury
after a patron of the restaurant chain struck the plaintiff with his car, and
T.G.I. Friday’s, which was ordered to pay $1 million to the parents of two
16-year-old teenagers who were killed after being involved in an accident with
a drunk driver. Witnesses in the case claimed that the patron at T.G.I.
Friday’s was drinking for eight hours at the establishment before the accident
occurred.
These cases are
not isolated incidents—victims and their families file suits against
restaurants or bars every day for their role in serving a customer who is then
involved in an alcohol-related accident. To help protect your establishment,
employees and patrons, establishing a liquor liability prevention policy,
training workers and transferring risk are critical to minimizing your liquor
liability.
Prevention
through Education
The most
important defense against being liable for drunken driving accidents is
prevention through education. It is imperative that you design a liquor
liability training program for staff members who will serve alcoholic beverages
to customers. In these training sessions, employees will learn important
information such as how to determine if someone has had too much to drink, how
to deny a patron service and how to identify valid forms of identification to
prevent serving alcohol to minors. Once an employee has completed the training,
he or she should sign an agreement form outlining that they comply with and
understand the policies set forth by the establishment.
Specifically,
training should include the following:
- Signs of Intoxication
- Monitoring Consumption
- Offering Continued Service
- Denying Service
- Reporting Incidents
- Employee Legal Consequences
As part of your
initiative to lessen risks, educate employees on how drunken patrons may affect
their lives. Employees must understand how serving to minors who use fake IDs
will result in large fines or how dram shop laws are stricter than ever and
breaking them may pose serious consequences. Remind employees that they are
liable and could a face a number of consequences for not cutting off patrons
before they’ve had too much to drink. Types of employee liability include:
- Criminal Liability: Employees can be found criminally liable for serving to minors with a fake ID or serving to a patron who appears intoxicated. The employee can face monetary fines, probation or jail time depending on state laws. In addition, your establishment can lose its liquor license and is susceptible to fines as well as higher insurance premiums.
- Civil Liability: If employees are found guilty of civil liability for a patron’s injury, that employee, the owner and the establishment face large monetary fines. At times, these fines are so large that they cause bankruptcy.
- Dram Shop Laws: These laws allow establishments, owners and employees to be sued by an individual after they’ve been injured by a patron served at the establishment.
Transferring
Your Risks
To protect your
business, it is wise to obtain a liquor liability policy either as standalone
coverage or as part of a restaurant and bar package policy. Contact
Naught-Naught Agency at 573-634-2727 for more information about these effective
coverage options. We understand carrier requirements and the state’s dram laws
to design a policy that suits you best.
