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East Texas Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer

Drunk driving accidents come at a huge cost to society, and they come at a huge cost to injured victims and family members who lose a loved one due to the carelessness of a drunk driver. That’s why Texas has tough laws to prevent drunk driving, including significant fines and criminal penalties. And yet, in 2021 alone, more than 1,000 people were killed in car accidents involving a driver under the influence of alcohol.

Victims of drunk driving accidents deserve justice, and they deserve fair compensation for the losses they have suffered. However, even in cases like these, victims still face significant resistance from insurance companies. Don’t make the mistake of thinking your personal injury case will be easy just because the other driver was drunk. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way.

If you’ve been injured or lost a loved one due to an intoxicated driver, contact the drunk driving accident lawyers at Roberts & Roberts today. Our car accident lawyers have successfully helped countless victims of auto accidents in the Tyler, Longview, and East Texas area for nearly 40 years. While nothing can ever eliminate the pain of an injury or death caused by a drunk driver, you do have legal rights—and we are here to protect them.

Hurt by a Drunk Driver? Don’t Wait to Get Legal Help

The first few days and weeks after a serious car accident can feel like a whirlwind. Your calendar starts filling up with doctor appointments and visits to specialists. The medical bills are starting to pile up. Other bills are coming due, too—and if you can’t work, how will you pay for it all?

We know that contacting a lawyer might not be the first thing on your mind. But it’s unwise to wait too long before getting to work on your drunk driving accident case.

The insurance company you’re going up against doesn’t have your best interests at heart. Their goal is saving money. As soon as possible after the crash, they’ll begin looking for ways to justify denying your claim or reducing the amount they have to pay out to settle your insurance claim. They could argue that you were at least partly responsible for your own crash, or that your injuries (and the effect they have on your daily life) are not as serious as you say they are.

The longer you wait to begin working on your case, the harder it may become to obtain the evidence you need and the more likely you are to make simple, preventable mistakes when talking with a claims adjuster. The best way to defend your rights is by speaking with an experienced drunk driving accident lawyer as soon as possible—and before you talk to the insurance company.

Why Call Roberts & Roberts?

At Roberts & Roberts, we’re serious about building safer communities and making sure our clients get all the help and assistance they need and deserve. As with all our clients, we go the extra mile for drunk driving accident victims:

• We come to you. No need to wait until you can make an appointment at our office. We’ll come visit you at home or the hospital and help you get started.
• We’re available 24/7. Call us anytime. We have a 24/7 answering service, voicemails go directly to email, and we even give out our personal home phone numbers. If we don’t answer immediately, we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
• We handle everything. Once our attorneys are on your case, we’ll do absolutely everything in our power to get you the best possible outcome. We can help you get the medical care you need even if you don’t have health insurance. We can help you with car rentals and repairs. We’ll work with your creditors to keep the bill collectors away while you focus on healing and getting back on your feet.
• We have the expertise you need. Our board-certified attorneys have the extensive experience and expertise needed to negotiate the right settlement or take your drunk driving accident lawsuit to court. We have the resources to thoroughly investigate cases, get input from expert witnesses, and even use sophisticated tools such as 3D animations and illustrations to present the most compelling case possible to an insurance company or jury.

Further, you will not be obligated to pay any attorney’s fees, court costs, or other legal expenses unless you are compensated. We get paid a percentage of your settlement or verdict. To request your free consultation, call us today at (903) 251-2873.

Drunk Driving Accidents and Injuries in Texas

When a person chooses to get behind the wheel after having had too many drinks, that individual presents a danger to everyone on the road. Slowed reaction time, impaired judgment, blurred vision, and the tendency to nod off behind the wheel are just some of the consequences of having too much alcohol before driving.

Drunk drivers not only are more likely to cause accidents, but the severity of their accidents is also likely to be higher. This is because drunk drivers are unpredictable and may not react properly to avert a crash. This means they may not slam on their brakes or swerve to avoid a head-on crash like sober drivers would.

Some of the injuries that are likely to occur in drunk driving crashes include:

• Death
• Broken bones
• Soft-tissue injuries
• Scarring and disfiguration
• Lacerations
• Amputation of limbs
• Traumatic brain injury
• Spinal cord injury (paralysis)
• Burns

These drunk driving injuries often happen to innocent victims who had no control over the decision of some other driver to get drunk and go for a ride.

Texas Drunk Driving Statistics

Despite the potential for harsh penalties, including fines and jail time, drunk driving continues to be a severe problem in Texas. The statistics are sobering. Looking just at 2021:

• There were 25,283 DUI-related crashes in Texas
• 1,077 people were killed by alcohol-impaired drivers. This total includes 673 DUI drivers, 165 of their passengers, 190 people in other vehicles, and 43 pedestrians and cyclists. (A further 6 fatalities are listed as “other” in the official report.)
• 120 children under the age of 21 were killed in alcohol-related crashes, including two infants and 12 kids aged 5 and younger.
• Crashes and fatalities were significantly more common at night. More than half of all crashes (13,601) occurred between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. The most common hour for crashes and fatalities was 2 a.m. to 2:59 a.m., with 3,106 crashes and 135 fatalities.

We urge all Texas drivers to exercise caution while on the roads. And if you have been drinking, do not get behind the wheel.

Taking Action in Texas Drunk Driving Cases

Victims of drunk driving accidents or their surviving family members have the right to take legal action. The experienced drunk driving accident attorneys at Roberts & Roberts can help you with all aspects of your case. Here is a summary of some of the key points.

Proving Negligence

In order to get compensation, you need to prove that the suspected drunk driver caused the auto accident. That isn’t always as straightforward as you might think. It may involve:

• Proving that the other driver was drunk at the time of the car crash. In Texas, a driver with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) above 0.08 is considered legally intoxicated and may face criminal penalties. However, if you can prove the other driver was impaired, they can still be held liable for a DUI accident even if their BAC was under the legal limit.
• Proving that the drunk driver was directly responsible for the accident. (Even if the driver was drunk, the accident could still be at least partially your fault if you were also negligent, for example speeding or running a red light.)
• Proving that the injuries you suffered were the direct result of the crash.

In some instances, there may also be other parties to hold responsible for the drunk driving crash. Texas, like many states, has dram shop laws that can impose legal responsibility on the owners of bars or restaurants that serve alcohol to intoxicated patrons who then drive drunk. Taking action against the bar or restaurant under these laws can provide the injured victim of a drunk driving accident with an additional defendant to sue in order to recover full and fair compensation.

Calculating Damages

The damages for surviving victims of drunk driving accidents should include:

• Past and future medical treatment (including hospital bills, physical therapy, etc.).
• Past and future lost wages and reduced earning potential.
• Compensation for pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other “non-economic” damages you have suffered as a result of the crash.

If a loved one was killed in the crash, the surviving family members may bring a wrongful death lawsuit in order to obtain compensation for additional losses, including loss of companionship and a lifetime of lost financial contributions from the deceased.

Sometimes, punitive damages are awarded in drunk driving cases. Unlike the damages listed above (collectively known as compensatory damages), punitive damages aren’t meant to make victims “whole.” They are extra damages meant to punish and discourage excessively reckless or malicious behavior.

Calculating damages accurately is a difficult process that requires skill and experience. We will need to carefully review all your medical records. We may need to speak with doctors, life care planners, and other experts who can project your future costs. We’ll also talk with family, friends, and colleagues to get a sense of how your injuries, or the loss of loved ones, affected your day-to-day life.

The insurance company won’t do this hard work for you. They will most likely try to get you to accept a lowball settlement offer for far less than what you truly deserve. Again, the best way to protect yourself is to work closely with an experienced attorney who has your best interests at heart.

Contact Roberts & Roberts Today

The board-certified personal injury attorneys at Roberts & Roberts Law Firm represent victims of drunk driving car accidents in Tyler, Longview and across East Texas. We have been helping people move forward after serious auto accidents for nearly 40 years.

If you’ve been injured by a drunk or drugged driver, contact our legal team now at (903) 251-2873 or fill out our online contact form. There is no charge for the initial review. The call costs you nothing … it could mean everything.

References

Texas Department of Transportation. Annual Texas motor vehicle crash statistics. Retrieved from https://www.txdot.gov/data-maps/crash-reports-records/motor-vehicle-crash-statistics.html

The content provided here is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject.