Drunk Driving Car Accident Lawyer In Hialeah, FL
According to the Florida DMV, there were over 43,000 DUI violation tickets issued in 2017 alone. Miami-Dade County issued a total of almost 4,000 DUI violations during this period.
Drinking and driving is an ongoing public safety issue of great concern. Many states have tightened laws to address this problem. When a person is driving drunk, they are at an increased risk of injury to themselves and others. The end result of such carelessness can be devastating to the unfortunate victims of a drunk driving accident. The drunk driver will likely be injured as well, not to mention remorseful if he or she survives the accident with permanent damage or disability and faces a long road to recovery.
A Major Health Risk
It is unfortunate that some people choose to get behind the wheel while drunk and cause pain and suffering to others. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently reported 10,874 alcohol-impaired fatalities in 2017. The report goes on to mention the severe economic cost that such actions result in. In 2010, alcohol-impaired drivers caused $44B worth of economic damage in the United States.
The trail of misery left in the wake of such reckless behavior is immense. In 2017, over 1,000 children under the age of 14 lost their lives in motor vehicle crashes. Of these, 220 lost their lives in alcohol-related driving crashes. Up to 55% of crashes happen in urban areas – a drive just down the street while impaired by alcohol use can be loaded with danger.
When Your Car Has Been Hit by a Drunk Driver
A car accident is always a traumatizing event, even when there is no drunk driver involved. A simple bumper-to-bumper accident can set your routine and day into a tailspin. Add personal injury to it and you may have to seek compensation from multiple people or parties responsible for an accident. An experienced car accident lawyer can help you navigate this entire process smoothly.
The survivors of motor vehicle crashes can sometimes be left with devastating injuries such as spinal cord-related complications, internal bleeding, or brain trauma. Such injuries can require years of physiotherapy and rehabilitation which can be very costly.
In general, judges and juries are sympathetic to the victims of a drunk driver whose actions have resulted in either damage to the victim’s car, injury to the victim him or herself, or both. You may not be in shape to go to work, you may require physiotherapy or surgery, or you may suffer from post-traumatic stress after the accident. In the chaos after an accident, you should not ignore your right to compensation. You may be entitled to a host of payments such as car repairs, lost wages, lost future earning potential, pain, suffering, and much more. A lawyer can help you seek damages that you may not know you can claim because not everything is obvious in a complicated drunk driving situation. The negligent driver may also face charges in a courtroom and you may have to give testimony or give a statement to the court. A lawyer can help you handle this aspect of the accident’s aftermath, as well.
Damages That You Can Claim
Your dedicated Hialeah drunk driving lawyer will analyze the accident you were involved in from a legal standpoint and file a claim for a number of damages on your behalf. These can range from a personal injury lawsuit for economic damages to punitive damages against the negligent drunk driver. Though the bar on punitive damages is usually much higher than the bar set on personal injury or property insurance claims, a greater burden of proof is needed to make such a claim. An experienced drunk driving accident professional will be able to help you file a claim and complete all the requisite steps required to receive the damages you are rightfully owed.
- Your lawyer will help you objectively verify the monetary loss compensation that you should claim. This includes medical expenses, loss of earnings due to the accident, burial costs, loss of property, costs of vehicle repair, and the cost of substitute services you had to pay for as a result of the accident, amongst other things.
- You can also claim subjective non-monetary loss compensations. These would include compensation for mental suffering, emotional distress, and other damages related to a loss in your quality of life as a result of the accident.
- Punitive damages are meant to punish the drunk driver for their behavior and prevent the recurrence of such a tragedy. Your lawyer will help fight your case and determine if you can claim these damages.
In certain cases, the owner of liquor or retail establishments can also be held accountable for their negligence in selling alcohol to a person already under the influence. An experienced lawyer will look into every detail of your case and claim damages from insurance companies, the drunk driver, and any other party that may be responsible for the drunk driving accident that caused you harm either physically, psychologically, financially, or in terms of property.
The person furnishing alcohol to a drunk person – whether by delivering, selling to, exchanging, providing, or giving away the alcohol – can also be held accountable. This could potentially include bars, taverns, liquor shops, corner markets, or other establishments that sold alcohol to someone who may have been visibly drunk. These things can happen, and our lawyers can help you establish that an intoxicated driver was the cause of injury, death, or other damages.
Call Us Today
To learn about filing for damages, your rights in a drunk driving case, and how to deal with insurance companies, hospitals, and law enforcement authorities, call our drunk driving car accident lawyers in Hialeah at 305-928-2909 today.