If you are going to be hosting an upcoming party, you might be looking forward to sharing drinks with friends and family. However, you might not have thought about the potential liability that can go along with serving alcohol at your event, no matter how small it might be. Depending on where you live, you could face liability in the event that someone drinks at your property and then causes an accident when driving home. These are a few tips that can help you prevent this from happening.
1. Limit the Alcohol That is Served
There is nothing wrong with everyone having a few drinks at your party. However, putting out alcoholic beverages and allowing everyone to serve themselves can turn into a free-for-all that can result in many of your guests drinking way more than they should.
Limiting how much alcohol is available -- such as by serving it yourself or only putting out a limited amount -- is a good way to help prevent people from consuming too much. Additionally, you might want to monitor the situation and avoid putting out more drinks once it seems that your guests have had enough. As an added bonus, along with helping to prevent people at your party from getting too drunk and driving, keeping the alcohol served under control can help you cut down on the costs of hosting your event, too.
2. Offer a Place for Guests to Sleep
Even though it might not be ideal, you would probably rather your guests crash on your couch or your floor than drink too much, drive home, and possibly hurt themselves or someone else in the process. Before your party even begins, consider rounding up extra blankets, pillows, air mattresses and more to ensure that any guests who overindulge have a safe place to sleep.
3. Call for Assistance
It's never a good idea to send a friend out the door, keys in hand, when you know he or she has had too much to drink, even if that person is an adult who should be capable of making his or her own decisions. Instead, consider offering to call a taxi or arranging some other type of ride, such as from a mutual friend, to help keep your friend safe.
As you can see, there are various steps that you can take to help you avoid being held liable for people drinking and driving after your party. If you follow these tips, you can both help prevent lawsuits and can help keep everyone -- from your guests to the other people on the road -- safe.
For more informational in liability and dram shop laws, contact a company like Spirited Consulting, LLC.
