Someone made a choice. They drank, they got behind the wheel, and you are the one paying for it with your injuries, your missed work, and a recovery you never signed up for. That is worth being angry about.
A Spokane drunk driving accident lawyer at Parker & McConkie represents people hurt by impaired drivers throughout Spokane and Washington, and we pursue full compensation on top of anything the criminal courts do. Consultations are free, and you owe us nothing unless we win.
If a drunk driver injured you or killed someone you love, call our Spokane office at (509) 374-3111.
Is the Criminal DUI Case the Same as Your Injury Claim?
No, and this is the first thing to understand. The criminal case and your injury claim are two separate matters, running on separate tracks, with different goals. When a driver is charged with driving under the influence, meaning DUI, the state prosecutes to punish them. That process can send them to jail and suspend their license, but it does not pay your medical bills.
| Criminal DUI case | Your civil injury claim |
|---|---|
| Who brings it: The state, through a prosecutor | Who brings it: You, the injured person |
| Main goal: Punish the driver | Main goal: Pay for your losses |
| Possible result: Jail, fines, license loss | Possible result: Money for medical bills, lost income, and pain |
Your compensation comes from a civil claim, which you bring yourself against the driver and their insurance. Even if the criminal case results in restitution, meaning court-ordered repayment, that amount is usually a fraction of what a serious injury actually costs. The two do not cancel each other out. You can pursue your civil claim whether or not the driver is convicted.
A DUI conviction can actually strengthen your civil case, since Washington sets the legal limit at a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 percent under RCW 46.61.502. We use the criminal record, the police reports, and the breath or blood results to build your claim.
Can You Sue the Bar That Overserved the Driver?
Sometimes, yes, and it is a route many victims never realize exists. Washington law prohibits selling or serving alcohol to a person who is already obviously drunk. When a bar, restaurant, or club keeps pouring for a visibly intoxicated customer who then drives and hurts someone, that business can share responsibility.
Lawyers call this dram shop liability, an old term for a claim against an alcohol vendor. The rule against over-serving traces to RCW 66.44.200. Proving it takes fast work, meaning receipts, surveillance video, and witness accounts from the establishment, before that evidence is gone.
This second source of recovery matters most when the driver's own insurance falls short. Our Spokane attorneys look beyond the driver to every party that helped put an impaired person on the road.
Hurt by a drunk driver? Let our Spokane team find every source of compensation.
What If the Drunk Driver Had Little or No Insurance?
You may still recover through your own policy, and this catches people off guard. Drunk drivers are often underinsured, meaning they carry too little coverage to pay for a serious injury, or they have no insurance at all. When that happens, your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, shortened to UM and UIM, can step in to cover your losses.
This is coverage you already paid for, and using it is not the same as a rate-hiking at-fault claim. Insurers do not always explain that clearly, and some hope you never ask. We review every policy that could apply, including UM and UIM, a household member's coverage, and any commercial policy in play.
Stacking these sources is often how a drunk driving victim gets made whole when the at-fault driver cannot pay.
How Drunk Driving Crashes Injure People in Spokane
Impaired driving crashes tend to be more violent than ordinary wrecks, because a drunk driver rarely brakes or swerves in time. The result is often a high-speed, head-on, or wrong-way collision that causes catastrophic harm.
Spokane's late-night patterns concentrate the danger. The Division Street corridor and downtown nightlife feed impaired drivers onto the same roads after closing time, and winter conditions on I-90 and the surrounding highways leave even less room for error. Wrong-way crashes on divided highways, in particular, produce some of the worst injuries we see.
Because these crashes hit so hard, the injuries are frequently life-changing. Traumatic brain injury (TBI), meaning lasting disruption of brain function from a blow to the head, spinal cord damage, and wrongful death are all common outcomes. We build claims that reflect the true weight of what an impaired driver took from you.
What Evidence Strengthens a Drunk Driving Injury Claim?
The strongest drunk driving cases are built on evidence gathered early, and much of it lives outside your own memory of the crash. Because a criminal investigation runs alongside your claim, there is often more proof available than in an ordinary wreck.
Key evidence in these cases includes:
- The police report and the officer's observations of the driver's condition
- Breath or blood test results showing the driver's blood alcohol concentration
- Any DUI charge or conviction, which can carry real weight in your civil claim
- Receipts, tabs, and surveillance video from a bar or restaurant that served the driver
- Statements from witnesses who saw the driver before or during the crash
- Vehicle data, sometimes called black box information, showing speed and braking
This is why acting quickly matters so much. Surveillance footage is often erased within days or weeks, bar records get harder to obtain over time, and witnesses lose the sharp memory of what they saw. We move fast to preserve all of it.
A conviction can also make part of your civil case easier to prove. When a driver breaks a safety law like the DUI statute and injures someone, that violation can serve as strong evidence of negligence, meaning a failure to drive with reasonable care.
We know how to turn the criminal outcome into support for your claim for compensation.
We help everyday people stand up for What's Right.
How Long Do You Have to File a Claim After a Drunk Driving Crash?
In Washington you generally have three years from the date of the crash to file an injury lawsuit, set by RCW 4.16.080. If a drunk driver caused a death, the timeline for a wrongful death claim is measured from the date of death, and those deadlines can differ.
Waiting hurts these cases in particular. Dram shop evidence at a bar, surveillance footage, and witness memories fade fast, and criminal proceedings can affect timing. Talk to our Spokane office early so nothing you need slips away. Call (509) 374-3111.
Compensation for Drunk Driving Victims
You can recover your economic losses and your personal losses, which together add up to far more than the criminal court will ever order. The goal of your civil claim is to make you financially whole, not to punish the driver.
A full recovery generally includes medical care from the crash forward, lost wages and future earning capacity, and compensation for pain, disability, and the disruption to your life. Washington does not allow punitive damages in most injury cases, so the value comes from proving the real extent of your harm rather than from a penalty. The driver's impaired, reckless conduct still matters, because it strengthens your case on fault and supports full payment for everything the crash took from you. If a family lost someone, a wrongful death claim can cover funeral costs, lost financial support, and the loss of companionship.
It also helps to separate two things people often mix up. In the criminal case, a judge may order the driver to pay restitution, but that amount is usually narrow and rarely covers the full cost of a serious injury. Your civil claim exists precisely to recover what restitution leaves out, including future medical needs and the pain the crash caused. You did not choose any of this, and our job is to make sure the number reflects that.
Why Injured Victims Choose Parker & McConkie
We treat drunk driving cases as what they are, meaning preventable harm caused by a reckless decision, and we pursue everyone responsible. Our attorneys have recovered major results for injured clients across our states, and while past outcomes never promise a future result, they show we are prepared to hold both drivers and negligent businesses accountable.
Our Spokane office serves clients throughout Spokane County, and we know the local courts and the roads where these crashes happen. We coordinate with your medical providers, work alongside the criminal case rather than waiting on it, and chase down every applicable policy. When a case belongs in front of a jury, we are ready.
You never pay us out of pocket. We work on contingency, so our fee comes only from a recovery, and the first consultation is free.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a drunk driving accident lawyer in Spokane?
If a drunk driver caused real injuries, yes. These cases involve criminal proceedings, multiple insurance policies, and sometimes a bar's liability, and each piece affects what you recover. A Spokane drunk driving lawyer coordinates all of it and deals with the insurers so you can put your energy toward recovery rather than paperwork.
How much does it cost to hire a Spokane DUI accident attorney?
There is no cost upfront. We handle drunk driving injury claims on contingency, meaning you pay no attorney fee unless we win money for you, and the consultation is free. We also advance the case expenses, so hiring us takes nothing out of your pocket during recovery.
Can I recover if I was partly at fault for the crash?
Likely yes. Washington uses pure comparative negligence, so your compensation is reduced by your share of fault but not eliminated, even if you carried some blame. When the other driver was drunk, fault usually falls heavily on them, which protects your claim.
What if a drunk driver killed a member of my family?
You may have a wrongful death claim. Washington allows certain family members to recover for funeral expenses, lost financial support, and the loss of the relationship. These claims have their own deadlines and rules, so reach out early and let us walk you through your options with care.
The drunk driver was arrested. Do I even need my own lawyer?
Yes. The prosecutor represents the state, not you, and their goal is punishment, not paying your bills. No one in the criminal case is working to recover your medical costs, lost wages, or pain. A civil attorney handles that side, and the arrest often helps rather than replaces your claim.
Will I have to wait for the criminal trial to finish before I get compensation?
Not necessarily. Your civil claim can move forward on its own timeline, and it does not depend on a conviction. Sometimes we coordinate with the criminal case to use its evidence, but we do not simply sit and wait. Delays usually help the insurance company, not you.
The driver who hit me only had minimum insurance. Is that all I can get?
Often no. Your own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage may add another layer, and a bar that overserved the driver could be a separate source. We look past the at-fault driver's policy to find the full compensation available, which is frequently more than that first limit suggests.
Talk to a Spokane Drunk Driving Accident Attorney
An impaired driver made a choice that changed your life. Holding them and anyone who enabled them accountable is not about revenge. It is about paying for the care you need and the losses you did not cause.
Call Parker & McConkie in Spokane at (509) 374-3111, or reach our team toll-free at (833) 782-6387. Our Spokane office serves victims across Washington, and the first conversation is free.