Illinois Dram Shop Act: Can I Sue the Bar? (2026 Guide)

Last Updated: October 29, 2026

Every person injured in this State, in person or property, by an intoxicated person has a claim under 235 ILCS 5/6-21 against a person licensed to sell alcoholic liquor who, by selling or giving alcoholic liquor, causes the intoxication. The action is barred unless it is commenced within one year next after the cause of action accrued.

“Can I go after the bar?” The question comes up after a crash with a drunk driver, when the driver’s own insurance will not cover the harm. Illinois gives the answer a name, a short deadline and a set of dollar limits, and this guide takes them in order.

When a drunk driver causes a crash in Illinois, the driver is one of the people who may have to answer for it. Under the Dram Shop Act, the bar, restaurant, tavern or liquor store that sold or gave the driver the drinks that caused the intoxication can also be held responsible for your injuries.

What Is the Illinois Dram Shop Act?

The Illinois Liquor Control Act, at 235 ILCS 5/6-21, gives a person injured by an intoxicated person a claim against the licensed seller whose sale or gift of alcohol caused that intoxication. This is called a dram shop claim.

Section 6-21 asks whether the licensed person, by selling or giving alcoholic liquor, causes the intoxication of the person who, while intoxicated, causes the injury in this State.

What do I have to prove in an Illinois dram shop case?

Instruction 150.02, used with Instruction 150.01, requires these propositions. The person was intoxicated at the time of the occurrence. The defendant, or the defendant’s agent or servant, sold or gave intoxicating liquor that the person consumed. The liquor consumed caused the person’s intoxication. The person’s intoxication was at least one cause of the occurrence. As a result of the occurrence, the plaintiff suffered injury or property damage. Section 6-21 places that claim against a person licensed under the laws of this State or of any other state to sell alcoholic liquor, and the injury or property damage is in this State.

The contested question is causation: whether this licensed person, by selling or giving alcoholic liquor, caused the intoxication, including when the person drank in more than one place. Useful evidence includes bar tabs and receipts showing what was purchased and when, surveillance video, testimony from bartenders and other staff, testimony from other patrons, and the driver’s blood alcohol result from the crash investigation.

What can a dram shop claim pay, and what are the 2026 limits?

The seller claim is separate from the claim against the driver. Uninsured and underinsured coverage follow 215 ILCS 5/143a-2, including the written rejection of additional uninsured coverage and the underinsured limit measured by amounts actually recovered. For a cause of action involving injury, death, or property damage on or after July 1, 1998, section 6-21 sets a base of $45,000 for injury to the person or property of each person and $55,000 for either loss of means of support or loss of society. Beginning in 1999, every January 20 those limits change by the percentage change in the consumer price index-u. The Comptroller determines the new amount and makes it available by January 31. The courts use the limit in effect when damages are awarded by final judgment or settlement. For final judgments or settlements awarded on or after January 20, 2026, the Illinois Comptroller published limits of $90,411.55 for injury to the person or property of each person and $110,503.00 for either loss of means of support or loss of society. Separate claims may exceed one limit when a person incurs more than one type of compensable damage. All persons claiming loss of means of support or society are limited to an aggregate that does not exceed the single limitation for the death or injury of each person from whom support or society is claimed.

How long do I have to file a dram shop claim in Illinois?

The seller action is barred unless it is commenced within one year next after the cause of action accrued. The injury action against the driver is separate. For an injury to the person, 735 ILCS 5/13-202 generally requires the action to be commenced within two years next after accrual.

Can I sue the friend who hosted the party where the driver drank?

Section 6-21 names a person licensed to sell alcoholic liquor. A separate sentence in that section reaches a person at least 21 who pays for a hotel or motel room or facility knowing a person under 21 will use it for unlawful consumption, when that consumption causes the intoxication. Another sentence reaches a person who owns, rents, leases, or permits occupation of a building knowing alcoholic liquor will be sold there, or who knowingly permits a sale after leasing the building for another purpose.

Illinois does not create a general common-law claim against a private social host merely for furnishing alcohol to an adult (Charles v. Seigfried, 165 Ill. 2d 482 (1995)). A separate claim can arise when a host affirmatively takes charge of a helpless guest and negligently performs that care (Wakulich v. Mraz, 203 Ill. 2d 223 (2003)). In Bell v. Hutsell, 2011 IL 110724, the supreme court reversed a voluntary-undertaking theory where hosts verbalized monitoring intent only to their son, took no affirmative steps to prohibit underage possession or consumption, and did not assume the kind of affirmative control recognized in Wakulich. Any such common-law theory is narrow, limited to the scope of the undertaking, and depends on the facts.

740 ILCS 58/5 creates a separate civil route focused on a person under 18. Subsection (a) makes a person at least 18 who willfully supplies alcoholic liquor or illegal drugs to a person under 18 and causes that impairment liable for death or injuries to persons or property caused by the impairment. Subsection (b) gives a right of action to a person, or the surviving spouse and next of kin of a person, injured in person or property by an impaired person under 18, and to a person under 18 injured by an impairment caused by liquor or drugs willfully supplied by a person over 18, against any person who, by (i) willfully selling, giving, or delivering liquor or drugs, or by (ii) willfully permitting consumption on premises owned or controlled by that person when that person is over 18, causes or contributes to the under-18 person’s impairment. Subsection (c) bars the action unless it is commenced within two years after the right of action arises. Not every party guest or every underage-drinking event fits those clauses.

235 ILCS 5/6-16(a-1) is separate criminal law. It makes it unlawful for a parent or guardian to knowingly permit his or her residence, other private property under his or her control, or a vehicle, conveyance, or watercraft under his or her control to be used by an invitee of the parent’s child or the guardian’s ward, when the invitee is under 21, in a manner that violates the Act by knowingly authorizing or permitting consumption of alcoholic liquor. A violation is a Class A misdemeanor, and a Class 4 felony where the violation directly or indirectly results in great bodily harm or death. That section creates criminal liability only; it is not the civil 58/5 claim.

Can I sue the drunk driver and the bar at the same time?

You can pursue the claim against the drunk driver and the dram shop claim against the seller at the same time. They are separate claims against separate defendants, each with its own deadline. The car accident claim rests on the driver’s negligence; the dram shop claim rests on the seller’s sale or gift of the drinks that caused the intoxication, subject to the limits above. Our overview of drunk driving injury cases in Peoria shows how the two claims fit into one recovery.

If a drunk driver hurt you in Peoria or the surrounding counties, Peoria personal injury lawyer Robert Parker reviews both claims together. The one-year clock on the claim against the bar is the reason to call before the driver’s case is resolved. If the driver’s insurer has already refused to pay, see why an insurance company will not pay after an Illinois crash.

Talk with Robert Parker about the crash and the bar.

Parker & Parker reviews personal injury claims for people in Peoria and across Central Illinois. Call 309-673-0069 or contact us online for a free consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the statute of limitations for a dram shop claim in Illinois?

The seller action is barred unless it is commenced within one year next after the cause of action accrued. An injury action is generally commenced within two years next after accrual under section 13-202.

Can I sue a bar if the drunk driver wasn’t convicted of DUI?

Yes. A criminal conviction is not one of the propositions. Instruction 150.02 requires intoxication at the time of the occurrence, a sale or gift of intoxicating liquor that the person consumed, intoxication caused by that liquor, intoxication that was at least one cause of the occurrence, and injury or property damage resulting from the occurrence. Section 6-21 requires a licensee in this State or another state, and the injury or property damage is in this State.

Does Illinois dram shop law apply to private house parties?

Section 6-21 names a licensed seller, and it also names the hotel or motel payer and the person who knowingly permits a sale in a building. Illinois does not create a general common-law claim against a private social host merely for furnishing alcohol to an adult. A separate civil route under 740 ILCS 58/5(a) makes a supplier at least 18 who willfully provides alcoholic liquor or illegal drugs to someone under 18 and causes the impairment liable for death or injuries to persons or property caused by that impairment. Subsection (b) allows claims by a person injured in person or property by an impaired person under 18, or that injured person’s surviving spouse and next of kin, and by a person under 18 injured by an impairment caused by liquor or illegal drugs willfully supplied by a person over 18. The claim is against a person who, by willfully selling, giving, or delivering liquor or illegal drugs, or by willfully permitting consumption on premises that person owns or controls when that person is over 18, causes or contributes to the under-18 person’s impairment. Subsection (c) sets a two-year period after the right of action arises. Other common-law theories against a private host are fact-specific and narrow (Bell v. Hutsell, 2011 IL 110724: the scope of the undertaking, affirmative conduct or control, and increased-risk or reliance context matter). Section 6-16(a-1) makes it unlawful for a parent or guardian to knowingly permit controlled residence, property, or a vehicle to be used by an invitee of the parent’s child or the guardian’s ward under 21 in violation of the Act; that subsection is criminal only.

Is there a limit on what an Illinois bar has to pay in a dram shop claim?

For a cause on or after July 1, 1998, the statutory base is $45,000 for injury to the person or property of each person and $55,000 for either loss of means of support or loss of society. Beginning in 1999, every January 20 those limits change with the consumer price index-u. The Illinois Comptroller publishes the adjusted amount by January 31, and the courts use the limit in effect when damages are awarded by final judgment or settlement. For final judgments or settlements awarded on or after January 20, 2026, the Comptroller published limits of $90,411.55 and $110,503.00 for those two categories.

Need a lawyer? This article is part of our Peoria Car Accident Lawyer practice area. Call Parker & Parker at 309-673-0069 for a free consultation.