Houston Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer

Drunk driving crashes can be severe, not only are they deeply traumatizing for the victim and their family members, but they can also lead to heavy financial losses in the form of medical bills, property damage, lost wages, and out-of-pocket expenses. To be on the receiving end of such a tragedy is a hard pill to swallow.

However, drunk driving accidents are a reality and we cannot turn our faces from this fact. What we can do is to muster up all of our strength, brush off our pain and agony for only a moment (at the accident scene), and seek financial compensation for all that we had to go through.

Just be sure to approach matters after consultation with experienced personal injury lawyers.

If things don't work out with the insurance company, later on, you may have to proceed with filing a personal injury lawsuit.

While you can approach the matter on your own, but as many people learn the hard way, it is not as simple as it first seems. Getting a drunk driver in the at-fault position (even though they are the clear offenders) is hard enough as it is without the insurance company playing its cards in getting off with paying you less than what you need or avoiding the payment altogether.

Such mistreatment calls for swift legal action, and a team of competent drunk driving accident lawyers will become your greatest asset in the road of seeking fair compensation. Call our experienced drunk driving accident lawyer today for a free case review.

What Does The Law In Houston, Texas Say About Drunk Driving Car Accidents?

Driving under the influence is nothing to be taken lightly. The law of Texas is clear about who’s at-fault in a drunk driving accident – the intoxicated driver. And that’s not all, intoxicated drivers involved in an auto accident will face criminal charges (it is also considered a tort). However, this won't get you anything to help you with all the pain and agony (and all the types of damages) you're going through.

For a fair financial reimbursement for all the economic and non-economic damages you sustained, you can sue the at-fault driver, or their insurance provider, or the company they work for – if the vehicle belonged to the said company, seek legal consultation from competent driving accident attorneys as soon as possible especially if you plan on filing a personal injury lawsuit. Call our experienced drunk driving accident lawyer today for a free case review.

Several factors may contribute to drunk driving crashes:

Driving Under The Influence: The law of Texas strictly prohibits any individual with a blood alcohol concentration of .08% or exceeding this limit, from driving. There is no tolerance or flexibility, in this case, drunk driving is a criminal offense, period. Drivers under the legal age of drinking – that is 21 years – found behind the wheel with even the slightest dose in their blood, will be counted as criminal offenders, and if you sustained severe injuries, you may be entitled to collecting punitive damages.

The Alcohol Provider: Perhaps the drunk driver went to a restaurant or a bar that continued to serve alcohol to the person beyond the safe limit of alcohol consumption, and did not stop him from getting behind the wheels. This party is also at-fault in the event of a motor vehicle accident and you can sue them too for all that you had to go through..

Unsafe Road Conditions: If the road conditions at the accident scene somehow contributed to this crash, although the chances are slim, you can hold the State of Texas responsible as well in your personal injury lawsuit. It is possible to file personal injury claims against the state of Texas if they fail to make the roads safe, giving them a share of the fault.

However, getting a good settlement offer or claiming your rightful compensation in a court of law is not an easy matter. Only highly experienced and professional drunk driving accident attorneys can help you through this mess and get you the financial assistance you need to get back on track.

Types of Injuries Sustained By Drunk Driving Accident Victims

It is hard to make any generalizations in the types of damages caused by such a crash, however, one thing is certain, all forms and types of damages are deserving of compensation and a personal injury attorney will see to it that you get it. Call our experienced drunk driving accident lawyer today for a free case review.

The nature of accident injuries for any crash depends mostly on the accident scene, how it all happened, and who was involved. For instance, a pedestrian struck by a drunk driver will be looking at the more extreme end of suffering, whereas a person seated in a vehicle may be somewhat safeguarded by airbags.

However, injuries to the spine, traumatic brain injury, herniation in the backbone, bone damage (fractures or shattered bones), cuts, bruises, and similar injuries are common. Even in the case of less severe motor vehicle crashes, pain and agony in the neck and otherwise are to be expected.

However, serious vehicle accidents often result in permanent disfigurations, amputations, severe blows to bones and muscles, damage to the internal organs, brain trauma, severe spine injuries, and in some cases, a wrongful death.

Thus, to say that drunk driving accidents are dangerous is a huge understatement. Driving while intoxicated can lead to devastating consequences, a possible traumatic brain injury can have lasting impacts on the victim's life, and anyone on the receiving end of such treatment is not likely to forget it anytime sooner.

If you were wronged like this by a drunk driver and sustained serious accident injuries, you need to muster up your courage, get in the loop with an experienced car accident lawyer, and seek a financial settlement agreeable to you.

What To Do After Drunk Driving Accidents?

For any automobile crash, including drunk driving accidents, you must gather your strength and take some preliminary steps to secure your position in demanding fair compensation for all the losses that you sustained. Call our experienced drunk driving accident lawyer today for a free case review.

Here’s what you need to do:

Call the Houston Police (or any other available law enforcement agencies) immediately, and wait near your vehicle (on a sidewalk) for the reporting officers to arrive.
Take photographs of the scene, picture everything that can help you narrate the accident details including your injuries, damage to your car, and the license plate of the other vehicle (this is first-hand evidence).
Check on the other party but be careful if they’re drunk, try not to aggravate the situation, but do ascertain whether they need immediate medical assistance or not.
Ask for any passerby’s help, and if there were eyewitnesses, request them to share their contact information as they can become valuable assets in your lawsuit.
Keep copies of the police reports with you, and keep track of all expenses (have the receipts on hand) that you had to bear.
Seek medical care within 72 hours of the accident, no later than this, and keep track of your medical records.
Seek financial compensation from the at-fault driver’s insurance company, taking the police reports, medical records, and assorted evidence with you, and settle for an offer only if it is fair.

If you feel that the insurance company is playing dirty, or of the insurance adjuster is trying to get you to accept a sum smaller than what you rightfully deserve, walk out without saying anything. Get legal assistance from a team of experienced auto accident lawyers and take matters to the court.

For a general hit and run accident, which can happen with a drunk driver (they may flee fearing the charges), the average settlement is between $10,000 and $25,000.

In severe cases (as is the case with most head-on collisions), your injury accident lawyers may also win exemplary damages from the responsible parties thus resulting in additional compensation for your accident injury claim.

However, in severe drunk driver accident cases, the reimbursement may be more than that, but if you feel like you are not getting what you rightfully deserve, you can always seek justice through civil lawsuits against all at-fault parties. Call our experienced drunk driving accident lawyer today for a free case review.

Financial Compensation For Victims of A Drunk Driving Accident

You can approach the insurance companies of the at-fault parties, and present your personal injury claim before them. As a drunk driving accident victim, you will have the right to ask for financial reimbursement to settle all of your economic and non-economic damages, such as:

All medical expenses such as the doctor's fee, medicine cost, cost of any physical therapy, compensation for surgery charges, payment for your stay at the hospital, and so on.
Any lost income that resulted from this accident. All the days that you were getting patched up by doctors or had to stay at home in agony, meant time cut from your working hours. A fair settlement must address this loss.
The agony, misery, pain, mental stress, or any permanent disfigurement that you had to endure due to someone else’s recklessness cannot go unnoticed, and the insurer is legally bound to compensate you for that.
Punitive damages encompass all losses that deserve an exemplary punishment of the at-fault driver to discourage such negligence and disrespect for the law in the future, you can add this to the compensation list as well.

However, if the insurance company refuses to cooperate, you can walk out and practice your legal rights. Have a team of qualified auto accident attorneys draft a lawsuit for you and take matters to a court of law.

Lawyers usually sum up all of your economic losses and multiplied with a number up to five based on your degree of pain and suffering.

Call our experienced drunk driving accident lawyer today for a free case review. They will see to it that they get you a fair reimbursement.

The Team at Calhoun Meredith Has Your Back

Going through such a phase in your life can be tough, especially if the accident was severe. However, we must all live on, and getting your rightful compensation is the one thing that you can do to move on. Insures are known to play dirty here, don’t fall for their traps, and we see to it that our clients receive the best treatment.

Whether it was a minor accident or a major one (which can result in wrongful deaths), contacting a law firm is never a bad idea.

At Calhoun Meredith, we have the backs of all of our clients in every scenario. Our qualified car accident lawyers will make sure that you get the financial assistance you need to bring your life back to normalcy. Initial consultations are free, so don't hesitate to give us a call, we'll explain everything for you, and if matters don't settle down with negotiations, we can help you proceed with a driving accident lawsuit.

You don't have to worry about paying us upfront as we work on a contingency fee basis, meaning that we only ask for a payment when our clients win their claim. Call our experienced drunk driving accident lawyer today for a free case review.