Drunk Driving Accidents Strength in Your Time of Need

Drunk Driving Accident Attorney in Hartford

Two Hartford Attorneys on Every Case, with Direct DUI Criminal Defense Knowledge

When a drunk driver injures you or someone you love, two legal proceedings begin almost simultaneously: Connecticut’s criminal prosecution of the impaired driver and your own civil personal injury claim. These tracks run independently, and your right to pursue compensation doesn’t depend on the outcome of any criminal case. At Carlson & Dumeer, LLC, we represent injured victims on the civil side while drawing on direct working knowledge of how Connecticut DUI criminal proceedings operate. That dual-discipline perspective matters when evidence from a criminal case intersects with your claim.

Both attorneys, Scott Carlson and Brian Dumeer, work every case together. You don’t get one attorney handling your matter while the other is elsewhere. Free initial consultations are available for personal injury cases, we’re reachable 24/7, and we offer full Spanish language services. Hablamos español.

If you’ve been hurt by a drunk driver in Hartford, call Carlson & Dumeer, LLC now at (877) 795-5594 to schedule your free consultation. We’re available around the clock.

Why Hartford Accident Victims Choose Carlson & Dumeer, LLC

Scott Carlson has been licensed in Connecticut since 2010 and has maintained membership in the Connecticut Bar Association since 2010. He is also a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, a credential that reflects our depth on the criminal side of DUI law. Brian Dumeer has been licensed in Connecticut since 2010 and was named a Rising Stars honoree every year from 2017 through 2024.

Both Carlson and Dumeer were recognized in the Hartford Advocate’s 2014 Best Law Firm designation. We have also been recognized by the National Top 100 Trial Lawyers and among the Top 25 Motor Vehicle Trial Lawyers. These aren’t background details. They reflect a sustained commitment to motor vehicle injury work.

Compensation Available to Drunk Driving Accident Victims

Connecticut is an at-fault state. The driver who caused the crash bears full financial responsibility for resulting damages. A civil claim can pursue medical expenses (past, current, and future), lost wages and reduced earning capacity, pain and suffering, emotional distress, property damage, and loss of consortium.

Because drunk driving frequently meets the legal threshold of reckless indifference to others’ rights, Connecticut courts may also award punitive damages, which go beyond compensating the victim to penalize the defendant’s conduct. If the at-fault driver carries insufficient or no insurance, your own uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage may provide an additional source of recovery. If a loved one died in the crash, surviving family members may pursue a wrongful death claim under Connecticut law.

Steps to Take After a Drunk Driving Crash in Hartford

What you do in the hours and days after a crash shapes your civil claim. Evidence in drunk driving cases can disappear fast.

Protect your health and your claim:

Call 911 immediately. A police report and the responding officer’s field sobriety or blood alcohol content (BAC) test results are among the most important pieces of evidence in a drunk driving civil claim.
Seek medical evaluation right away, even if injuries seem minor. Delayed symptoms are common, and prompt documentation is critical.
Photograph everything: vehicles, visible injuries, road conditions, license plates, and the surrounding scene before conditions change.
Collect information at the scene: the other driver’s contact and insurance details, and witness statements before people leave.
Don’t give a recorded statement to any insurance company before speaking with an attorney.
Contact a Hartford drunk driving accident attorney promptly. Surveillance footage can disappear, and BAC records can become inaccessible. Connecticut’s dram shop notice deadline of 120 days begins running immediately from the date of injury.

Start Your Free Consultation Today

Drunk driving accident claims involve tight deadlines, parallel legal proceedings, and insurance disputes that can become complicated quickly. We protect your interests from the first call forward. Both attorneys are on your case from day one.

Call Carlson & Dumeer, LLC at (877) 795-5594 to speak with a Hartford drunk driving accident attorney today. We’re available 24/7, and your initial consultation is free.

Connecticut Dram Shop Act: When a Bar or Restaurant Shares Liability

The drunk driver isn’t always the only party who can be held responsible. Under Connecticut’s Dram Shop Act, CGS Section 30-102, an injured person can sue a licensed alcohol seller that served alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person who then caused an accident. Bars, restaurants, package stores, and similar establishments all fall within this law’s reach.

Observable signs of intoxication are central to these claims. Slurred speech, unsteady movement, or visibly impaired judgment that a reasonable employee could have detected can support liability. Dram shop liability in Connecticut is capped at $250,000 per occurrence regardless of the number of injured parties, which makes it a meaningful supplement when the at-fault driver is underinsured rather than a standalone recovery source.

A few important distinctions:

Dram shop and personal injury claims are independent. Both can be pursued at the same time against different defendants.
Social hosts are generally not covered. Connecticut’s dram shop law doesn’t extend liability to social hosts who serve alcohol to adult guests, though social hosts who furnish alcohol to minors can face civil liability.
Employer liability may apply if the impaired driver was operating a vehicle during work-related duties. In that case, the employer may face liability under respondeat superior principles, meaning responsibility for an employee’s actions within the scope of employment.

Filing Deadlines Hartford Victims Must Know

Drunk driving accident claims in Connecticut carry multiple deadlines, and missing any one of them can permanently bar a claim. The timelines below apply to civil actions only. The criminal DUI case runs on a separate track and has no effect on these civil deadlines.

Personal Injury Claims Against the Driver

Connecticut’s personal injury statute of limitations, CGS Section 52-584, gives victims two years from the date the injury is sustained or discovered to file a civil lawsuit against the drunk driver. Certain circumstances can toll (pause) that window. If the at-fault driver leaves Connecticut before a lawsuit is filed, the clock may be suspended until they return. Claims involving minors or incapacitated adults may have different timeframes.

Dram Shop Claims Against Alcohol Sellers

Dram shop claims carry separate and shorter deadlines. Written notice must be served on the alcohol-selling establishment within 120 days of the injury, extended to 180 days if the injured person dies or becomes incapacitated. The lawsuit itself must be filed within one year. Missing the notice deadline can permanently bar a dram shop claim regardless of how strong the underlying facts are.

Wrongful Death Claims

A wrongful death claim arising from a drunk driving crash must be filed within two years of the date of death and no more than five years from the accident itself under Connecticut law.

Why Drunk Driving Crashes Produce Severe Injuries

Impaired drivers are frequently speeding and don’t brake or take defensive action before impact. That combination means these collisions tend to produce far more severe harm than ordinary accidents. Common serious injuries include traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, paralysis, broken bones, crush injuries, severe burns, and amputations.

Recovery can stretch across weeks, months, or years of medical treatment, rehabilitation, and ongoing therapy. Those costs, along with lost income and non-economic losses, are exactly what a civil claim is designed to address. In some crashes, the impaired driver flees the scene, creating immediate safety gaps and additional evidentiary challenges. Prompt legal involvement can help preserve what evidence remains.

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