Short answer
Yes. Louisiana’s impaired-operation statute is not limited to ordinary cars and trucks. It expressly covers a motor vehicle, aircraft, watercraft, vessel, or other means of conveyance. That language can reach a boat, golf cart, ATV, side-by-side, and many other motorized ways of getting around.
People still commonly say “DWI” or “DUI,” but the current heading of Louisiana Revised Statutes 14:98 is Operating a vehicle while impaired. “OVI” better reflects the breadth of the statute.
What conduct does R.S. 14:98 prohibit?
A person commits OVI by operating a covered conveyance under any of these conditions:
- The operator is impaired by alcoholic beverages.
- The operator’s blood-alcohol concentration is 0.08 percent or more.
- The operator is impaired by another drug, a combination of drugs, or a combination of alcohol and drugs.
The statute defines a drug broadly as a substance or combination of substances that can impair a person’s ability to operate safely. A prescription is not automatically a defense if the medication actually impairs safe operation.
Why does the law say OVI instead of DWI?
The current wording emphasizes operation, not merely driving an automobile on a highway. It also emphasizes impairment, which can come from alcohol, drugs, or a combination.
The familiar term DWI remains useful in conversation and online searches, but it can give the false impression that the offense applies only to cars. Louisiana’s statute is written much more broadly.
Can you get an OVI on a boat?
Yes. Watercraft and vessels are expressly listed in R.S. 14:98. A day on the lake, bayou, or marsh does not create an exception to the impaired-operation rule.
Boating also presents distinct safety concerns. Reaction time, balance, visibility, current, wake, weather, and the lack of roadway markings can magnify the effects of impairment. The firm’s boat accident practice page explains the broader injury and liability issues that can follow a collision on the water. A boat operator may face separate wildlife, boating-safety, or navigation consequences in addition to an OVI case.
Can you get an OVI on a golf cart?
Yes, a golf cart can fall within the statute’s reference to a motor vehicle or other means of conveyance. The fact that the cart is being used in a neighborhood, resort, festival area, campground, or coastal community does not create an alcohol exception.
Local rules still determine where a golf cart may be operated and whether permits, equipment, or licensed drivers are required. Those access rules are separate from the statewide prohibition on impaired operation.
What about an ATV or side-by-side?
An ATV or side-by-side is also a motorized conveyance. OVI exposure does not disappear merely because the machine is on a trail, hunting lease, farm, or private recreation property.
The exact site can affect which additional traffic, land-use, or off-road rules apply. It may also affect the evidence available after a crash. Trail-camera footage, GPS data, vehicle computers, helmet cameras, and park records can be important.
Do you need a driver’s license to be charged?
No. R.S. 14:98 expressly says that a valid driver’s license is not an element of the offense and that not having one is not a defense. That provision is another reason the law can apply beyond conventional highway driving.
What if a child is riding along?
The statute contains a child-endangerment provision when a child age twelve or younger is a passenger in the motor vehicle, aircraft, watercraft, vessel, or other motorized conveyance. The consequences can affect whether otherwise mandatory portions of a sentence may be suspended.
Do not treat a golf cart or boat as a legal loophole for transporting children after drinking. The statute uses broad motorized-conveyance language.
What happens after an impaired-operation crash?
The criminal case and the injured person’s civil claim are related but distinct. A prosecutor addresses the alleged offense. A civil claim focuses on medical expenses, lost income, pain, disability, property damage, and other legally recoverable losses.
Potentially relevant evidence includes:
- Body-camera and dash-camera recordings.
- Breath, blood, or toxicology results and chain-of-custody records.
- Receipts, photographs, texts, and witness observations.
- Boat, cart, ATV, or side-by-side maintenance records.
- Rental agreements and safety instructions.
- GPS, phone, onboard-computer, and surveillance data.
A criminal conviction can be significant evidence, but an injury claimant still has to prove fault, causation, and damages. Other parties may share responsibility, including an owner who negligently entrusted the conveyance, a commercial operator, a rental business, or a defective-product manufacturer, depending on the facts.
Does insurance cover a boat, golf-cart, or ATV crash?
Coverage is often more complicated than in an ordinary car crash. Auto, homeowners, boat, recreational-vehicle, umbrella, rental, and commercial policies may contain different definitions and exclusions. The place of operation and ownership of the machine can change the analysis.
Do not accept a quick statement that “there is no coverage” without obtaining and reviewing the actual policies. A reservation-of-rights letter is not the final word on every potential source of recovery.
Frequently asked questions
Is the legal alcohol limit still 0.08 on a boat?
R.S. 14:98 uses the 0.08 threshold in its general definition and expressly includes watercraft and vessels. Impairment can also be alleged below that number based on other evidence.
Can I be charged on private property?
The text of R.S. 14:98 is not written only for public highways. The location and law-enforcement authority can raise fact-specific issues, but private property is not a safe assumption or an impairment exception.
What if the golf cart is street legal?
Street legality does not permit impaired operation. Registration, equipment, and local-permit compliance answer different questions.
Can a prescription drug support an OVI charge?
Potentially. The statute focuses on whether a drug or combination impairs safe operation, not only on whether the substance was prescribed.
Is OVI the same as DUI or DWI?
Those terms are often used conversationally for the same general conduct. OVI tracks the current title and breadth of Louisiana’s statute.
Louisiana law or legend?
Getting an impaired-operation charge on a boat, golf cart, or ATV is not an urban legend. The unusual part is how broad the statute actually is. For more verified Louisiana rules that are frequently repeated without context, visit our guide to unusual Louisiana laws.
Editorial & Legal Accuracy Notice (Louisiana)
Sources checked: September 24, 2026.
Prepared by: Babcock Injury Lawyers.
This article provides general information and is not criminal-defense or personal-injury advice. Impairment cases depend on the conveyance, location, observations, testing, statements, and applicable regulations. Anyone facing a charge should promptly consult qualified criminal-defense counsel.