Hit by a Drunk Driver in Las Vegas?

If you've been hit by a drunk driver, call 911 immediately. Tell the dispatcher you suspect the other driver is impaired — this ensures police respond with the intention of conducting field sobriety tests and potentially a breathalyzer or blood draw at the scene.

The responding officers need to document the drunk driver's condition before it changes. Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) drops over time, and every minute matters. Under Nevada's implied consent law (NRS § 484C.160), any person operating a vehicle is deemed to have consented to a BAC test upon arrest. If the driver refuses, officers can obtain a warrant for a mandatory blood draw and apply reasonable force to collect the sample. The police report from a DUI crash is one of the most powerful pieces of evidence in your civil claim.

Get yourself to a hospital. University Medical Center (UMC) at 1800 W. Charleston Blvd is Nevada's only Level I trauma center, treating over 12,000 trauma patients annually. Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center (3186 S. Maryland Pkwy) is a Level II trauma center and the largest acute care facility in Nevada. Dignity Health St. Rose Dominican Hospital in Henderson provides Level III trauma care. Drunk driving crashes are often high-speed, high-impact collisions — the injuries tend to be severe. Don't wait to see how you feel. Go now.

When officers arrive, give them a complete account. If you saw the other driver swerving across lanes, running a red light, driving the wrong way, or drifting off the road before the collision, say so. If you smelled alcohol when you interacted with the driver, say that too. Every detail goes into the police report — and that report becomes a key piece of evidence in your civil claim.

The officers will handle the DUI investigation: field sobriety tests, a breathalyzer or blood draw, and potentially an arrest. A BAC result showing the driver was over 0.08 (or over 0.04 for commercial drivers, or over 0.02 for drivers under 21) is powerful evidence of negligence that's very hard for any insurance company to argue against.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) discontinued traditional sobriety checkpoints in 2021 and now relies on a DUI Strike Team — a multi-agency task force that deploys up to 70 officers from LVMPD, Nevada Highway Patrol, North Las Vegas PD, Henderson PD, and Clark County School Police on targeted Saturday-night operations. One documented Strike Team blitz in south Las Vegas produced 232 vehicle stops, 98 citations, and 36 DUI arrests in a single night. Wrong-way driver incidents — nearly always linked to impaired driving — are a recurring and deadly pattern on I-15 and I-11.

If you're physically able, photograph everything. The other driver's vehicle, your vehicle, the intersection or stretch of road, traffic signals, skid marks, debris, and any visible injuries. If there are beer cans, bottles, or open containers in or around the other driver's car, photograph those too — from a safe distance. Don't touch anything in the other vehicle.

Get the other driver's name, insurance information, and license plate number. Get the names and phone numbers of any witnesses. In the chaos after a crash, people leave quickly — grab their contact info before they go. This is especially critical on the Strip and in casino parking structures, where witnesses may be tourists who are leaving Las Vegas within hours.

Keep photographing your injuries over the following days and weeks. Bruising deepens. Surgical incisions scar. Casts and braces tell a visual story that medical records alone don't capture. Save every medical bill, pharmacy receipt, and record of missed work.

Your civil claim is separate from any criminal charges the driver faces. Even if the drunk driver pleads guilty to DUI, that doesn't automatically get you compensated. You have to pursue your own claim — either through the driver's insurance company or by filing a lawsuit.

Nevada is an at-fault state. The drunk driver (and their insurance) is responsible for your damages: medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, property damage, and any long-term impacts on your life and earning capacity.

Liability in drunk driving cases is rarely disputed. A driver with a BAC over 0.08 was breaking the law, period. The fights in these cases are almost always about the size of the payout, not who caused the crash. Expect the insurance company to argue your injuries aren't as severe as you claim, that you had pre-existing conditions, or that you somehow contributed to the collision.

Under Nevada's modified comparative negligence rule (NRS § 41.141), your damages are reduced by your percentage of fault. If you're found 51% or more at fault, you recover nothing. In drunk driving cases, this threshold is rarely an issue — the impaired driver is typically found entirely or overwhelmingly responsible.

Nevada's dram shop law (NRS § 41.1305) is one of the most restrictive in the country — and in a city with 24/7 alcohol service, that matters. Under this statute, the consumption of alcohol — not its furnishing — is treated as the proximate cause of any resulting injury. In plain terms: a bar, casino, restaurant, or liquor store that serves alcohol to an intoxicated adult (21 or older) generally bears no civil liability for the damage that person causes.

This means you almost certainly cannot sue the Strip casino, the Fremont Street bar, or the resort nightclub that kept serving the driver who hit you. Unlike states like Wisconsin, Illinois, or Texas, where dram shop claims provide a significant second avenue for compensation, Nevada protects licensed establishments from liability for overserving adults.

There is one exception: NRS § 41.1305(2) creates liability when a licensed vendor knowingly serves alcohol to a person under 21, or does so in reckless disregard of the person's age, and that service proximately causes injury or death. If the drunk driver was under 21 and was served at a bar or casino, the establishment may share liability.

Unlicensed private individuals (social hosts) who knowingly provide alcohol to a minor can also be held liable. But for the vast majority of DUI crash victims in Las Vegas — where the driver was a legal adult served at a licensed establishment — the drunk driver's insurance is your primary and often only target for compensation.

Drunk driving crash victims in Nevada can recover the full range of personal injury damages. Nevada does not cap non-economic damages (pain and suffering) in most personal injury cases.

Medical expenses cover everything from the emergency room and ambulance ride through surgery, hospitalization, physical therapy, and any future treatment related to the crash. Drunk driving injuries tend to be severe — traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, multiple fractures, internal organ injuries — because impaired drivers often hit at full speed without braking.

Lost wages include time missed from work during recovery and any long-term reduction in your earning capacity. If you can't return to the same job because of your injuries, the difference in lifetime earnings is compensable.

Pain and suffering covers the physical pain and emotional toll of the crash and recovery. Fear, anxiety, PTSD, nightmares, and the psychological impact of knowing someone chose to drink and drive are all compensable.

Nevada also allows punitive damages when the defendant's conduct rises to oppression, fraud, or malice (NRS § 42.005). Driving drunk is strong evidence of malice or oppression. Punitive damages are capped at $300,000 if compensatory damages are under $100,000, or 3x compensatory damages if they equal or exceed $100,000.

You have two years from the date of the crash to file a personal injury lawsuit (NRS § 11.190(4)(e)). If the drunk driver killed someone, the wrongful death statute of limitations is also two years from the date of death.

Don't confuse your civil deadline with the criminal case timeline. The criminal DUI case operates on its own schedule — Nevada DUI penalties range from 2 days to 6 months jail for a first offense, up to a Category B felony for DUI causing substantial bodily harm or death. Your civil claim has its own clock, and it runs whether or not the criminal case has been resolved.

For claims against government entities — a government-owned vehicle, a poorly maintained government road — you must provide written notice within 2 years under NRS § 41.036. While this is the same timeframe as the general statute of limitations, the notice requirement is separate and failing to provide proper notice can complicate your claim.

Two years sounds like enough time. It's often not. Medical treatment takes months. You may not know the full extent of your injuries for a year or more. Negotiations with insurance drag on. Start the process early.

Drunk driving crash cases are among the strongest personal injury claims because liability is usually clear. But 'strong' doesn't mean 'easy.' The insurance company's job is to pay as little as possible, even when their policyholder was legally drunk behind the wheel.

An experienced attorney can obtain the police report and BAC evidence, coordinate with the Clark County District Attorney's office on the criminal case, investigate whether punitive damages are available, calculate your full damages (including future medical needs and lost earning capacity), and negotiate with the insurance company from a position of strength.

Most personal injury attorneys in Las Vegas handle drunk driving crash cases on contingency — no upfront cost, and they only get paid if you recover money. A free consultation costs you nothing and tells you whether your case has value and what the process would look like. Cases are filed in the Eighth Judicial District Court at the Regional Justice Center, 200 Lewis Avenue in downtown Las Vegas.

If your injuries are serious, if the driver's insurance is offering a lowball settlement, or if someone was killed, don't try to handle this alone. These cases have real value, and the insurance company knows it.