There are many sad stories in the law books about drinking in a tavern and driving home. In one case, a man had been drinking in a tavern where he regularly drank to excess. He lost control of his car, hit a rock wall in a single car accident, and was rendered quadriplegic as a result. In another case, two men were drinking in a tavern for some time. One of the men left the tavern and went to his car which was located in the tavern parking lot. He was tired and concerned about driving after drinking several beers. He sat in the passenger side of the car with his feet up. A few minutes later, the other man went to the car from the tavern. The man in the car told him to come back in about an hour to check and see if he was ready to drive. The other man went back to the tavern. The man in the car turned on the car radio and placed the car keys in the glove compartment. The next thing he recalled was hearing the other man shouting a warning. He was still in the passenger seat. The other man was driving the car, lost control, and was killed.
Many tavern owners have been sued. The law is clear, both under the general law and under the Liquor Licence Act, that a commercial vendor of alcohol, such as a tavern, has a duty to its patrons and others to ensure that the tavern does not serve alcohol in quantity which would either intoxicate or increase the patron’s intoxication. Taverns do not escape liability simply because a patron does not exhibit any visible signs of intoxication. And if drinks are refused when a patron exhibits signs of intoxication such as being too loud, starting arguments, knocking over drinks, falling down, creating problems for the staff, or upsetting other patrons, that is not good enough. Taverns also have a duty to take affirmative action to prevent intoxicated patrons from driving. Where it is reasonable to expect that a patron has come by car, there is a heavier duty on the tavern staff to keep an eye on the patron when the patron departs to check to see if the patron is driving and to arrange safe transportation, such as, a taxi.
Many tavern owners and their servers are certified with the Server Intervention Program set up by the Addiction Research Foundation of Ontario to assist them to evaluate and monitor patrons’ drinking and to prevent intoxicated patrons from driving.