Half compensation for those who get into a car with a drunk driver

Whoever gets into a car with a drunk driver accepts the risk of having an accident. And, if this occurs, the insurance company can cut the compensation by claiming contributory negligence on the part of the injured party. The Court of Bolzano, aligning itself with a analogue verdict of theCassio of 2025, applied the principle in a case concerning a car accident that occurred in 2018. The driver at the time died in the collision with a lorry. The passenger had sued, because he had only received part of the compensation from the insurance company. Judge Andrea Pappalardo has now ruled that he is not entitled to the full amount. This is because 'acceptance of the risk by the passenger, who gets into a vehicle driven by a person in an obvious state of intoxication' can justify a reduction in the compensation.

The Supreme Court, in its judgement 21896 of 30 July 2025, had upheld the judgement in which the Court of Appeal had reduced the compensation for parental loss by 30% to the heirs of a man who died in a car accident. The driver, at the time, had a alcohol content of 1.89 grams per litre compared to a maximum permitted limit of 0.5. Too much not to notice the state of intoxication, also because driver and passenger had spent the evening together.

According to ISTAT 2024 data, road accidents with injuries are over 170,000 a year and in 4.4 per cent of cases there is a driver in a state of drunkenness: alcohol is, therefore, a direct cause. The figure rises exponentially for fatal accidents. At night, the percentage of alcohol-related accidents rises dramatically, to more than 20 per cent of all accidents. Those who get behind the wheel after drinking are often young people: up to 25 per cent of accidents involving young people aged between 18 and 24 are attributable to alcohol consumption.