Can I Sue a Drunk Driver After a DWI Accident in East Brunswick?
Being injured by a drunk driver in East Brunswick can be especially difficult because the crash was preventable. Along with physical injuries, you may be facing medical bills, time away from work, and lasting changes to your daily life because someone chose to drive while impaired.
A DWI prosecution can hold the driver accountable for breaking the law, but it does not compensate you for what the crash has cost you. That requires a separate injury claim against the driver and, in some cases, another party that contributed to the crash, such as an alcohol provider. Below, Beninato & Matrafajlo Attorneys at Law, LLC explains how a DWI can affect your civil claim, who may be responsible, and what compensation you may be able to recover.
How a DWI Can Affect Your East Brunswick Injury Claim
A driver violates New Jersey’s DWI law, N.J.S.A. § 39:4-50, by driving while impaired by alcohol or certain drugs or with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent or higher. When a crash leads to a DWI investigation, the evidence collected by police—including officer observations, breath or blood test results, body-camera footage, witness statements, photographs, and video—can help show that the driver was impaired when the crash occurred.
However, intoxication alone does not automatically establish negligence. You generally still must show that the driver failed to use reasonable care and that this failure caused the collision and your injuries. Evidence that the driver crossed the center line, ran a red light, or lost control can help show how the crash occurred.
Can You Recover Compensation From a Drunk Driver?
Yes. The DWI proceeding is separate from your claim for compensation. You generally must pursue medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost income, and other legally recoverable losses through insurance coverage and, when appropriate, a civil claim or lawsuit.
Recoverable damages may include medical expenses, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, pain and suffering, disability, and loss of enjoyment of life.
Does the Limitation on Lawsuit Option Apply After a DWI Crash?
Being injured by a drunk driver does not automatically give you the right to recover damages for pain and suffering. If the limitation-on-lawsuit option applies to your auto insurance coverage, N.J.S.A. § 39:6A-8 generally requires you to show that your injury falls into one of several serious categories before you can recover noneconomic damages.
Those categories include death, loss of a body part, significant scarring or disfigurement, a displaced fracture, loss of a fetus, or a permanent injury. The fact that the other driver was intoxicated does not, by itself, remove this requirement.
Can You Seek Punitive Damages Against a Drunk Driver?
Punitive damages may be available in some cases, but they are not automatic. A drunk driver’s intoxication alone does not automatically justify punitive damages. You generally need additional evidence showing that the driver was acting recklessly or knowingly put others in serious danger. That could include how impaired the driver was, what the driver did before getting behind the wheel, how dangerously the driver was driving, or whether the driver ignored clear warnings not to drive.
N.J.S.A. § 2A:15-5.14 generally limits punitive damages to five times the defendant’s compensatory damages liability or $350,000, whichever is greater. That cap does not apply when the defendant has been convicted under N.J.S.A. § 39:4-50.
Can You Sue a Bar or Restaurant That Served the Driver?
Possibly. If the driver drank at a bar, restaurant, or another licensed establishment before causing an East Brunswick crash, New Jersey’s dram shop law may permit a separate claim against the alcohol server.
Under N.J.S.A. § 2A:22A-5, a licensed alcohol server such as a bar may be liable when negligent service was a proximate cause of the injury and the injury was foreseeable. It is not enough to show that the driver drank at the establishment. You generally need evidence that the business served alcohol negligently and that the service contributed to the crash.
The law treats service as negligent when alcohol was provided to a visibly intoxicated person or to a minor the server knew or reasonably should have known was underage. Receipts, surveillance footage, witness testimony, and observations about the driver’s behavior can be important.
Can You Sue a Social Host Who Provided the Alcohol?
A private host can sometimes be held responsible for a drunk-driving crash. Under N.J.S.A. § 2A:15-5.6, that can happen when the host knowingly gives alcohol to an adult who is visibly intoxicated, serving that person creates an obvious risk that someone could be hurt, and the intoxicated person later causes a crash. Simply serving alcohol at a private gathering is not enough to make the host legally responsible for the crash.
How Long Do You Have to Sue After an East Brunswick DWI Accident?
Under N.J.S.A. § 2A:14-2, you generally have two years to file a personal injury lawsuit after a drunk-driving crash. Insurance negotiations do not extend that filing deadline, so missing it can prevent you from pursuing compensation in court.
Important evidence can also disappear long before those two years are up. Surveillance footage may be overwritten, witnesses may forget details, records showing where the driver obtained alcohol may become harder to find, and vehicle data may no longer be available. Preserving that evidence can be especially important if there is a dispute over the driver’s intoxication, how the crash happened, or whether an alcohol provider may also be responsible.
East Brunswick DWI Accident Attorney
If you were injured by a drunk driver in East Brunswick, Beninato & Matrafajlo Attorneys at Law, LLC can use the DWI evidence to build your injury claim, identify everyone who may be responsible—including an alcohol provider when the facts support it—and fight for the compensation you deserve. The firm has recovered more than $100 million for New Jersey injury victims and was named a Top 10 Personal Injury Law Firm for 2026 by Attorney and Practice Magazine. Call (732) 795-5679 or contact us online for a free consultation with an East Brunswick DWI accident lawyer.
Dan T. Matrafajlo, Esq. is the Managing Member and Lead Partner at Beninato & Matrafajlo, Attorneys at Law, LLC, a New Jersey-based personal injury law firm with offices in Elizabeth and East Brunswick. With over two decades of experience representing clients in complex matters—including motor vehicle accidents, workers’ compensation, and wrongful death cases—he has recovered over $100 million on behalf of his clients and is known for securing significant results. He has also helped shape New Jersey personal injury law through notable Appellate Division decisions such as Hardison v. King and Frenklakh v. Lojek, with his litigation work featured in the New Jersey Law Journal, underscoring his authority in the field.
Mr. Matrafajlo was recognized as a Super Lawyers® Rising Stars honoree from 2012 to 2017 and is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum—an honor reserved for attorneys who have achieved multi-million-dollar verdicts and settlements. Combining deep legal expertise with a client-focused approach, he provides strategic, results-driven representation while guiding clients through every stage of the legal process. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Miami School of Law and is admitted to practice in both New Jersey and New York.
