Drunk driving accidents: What you should know.
It is much more common than it should be for an intoxicated person to get behind the wheel in Texas. Around 1,500 fatal drunk driving accidents occur each year in this state alone. While the intoxicated driver will likely face legal repercussions – such as a license suspension, fines and, potentially, jail time – they should also be held accountable for the damages they may cause to someone else.
Continue reading to learn why a drunk driving accident is different from your average car accident. If you have been injured in this or another type of accident, contact Greg Jackson Law at (817) 926-1003 now to find out how I can help protect your rights.
DWI requirements in Texas.
For a driver to be considered driving while intoxicated (DWI) in Texas, they must be above the legal intoxication limit. For most drivers over the age of 21, this limit is 0.08% blood or breath alcohol concentration (BAC). However, for commercial drivers, the limit is 0.04% BAC and underage drivers cannot legally drive with any alcohol in their system.
The difference between a drunk driving accident and your average accident.
A DWI accident is similar to other accidents in that serious injuries can be involved, your attorney will need to prove liability and negligence, and I will need to negotiate with the insurance provider to get a fair settlement. However, this is where the similarities end.
If a person gets behind the wheel when they are above the legal BAC, then they are committing an act of negligence per se – and this essentially automatically proves that they are liable in the accident. This is why a victim of a drunk driving accident is much more likely to receive punitive damages, which are designed to punish the at-fault party, compared to another accident victim.
Does this mean your case is a slam dunk? Far from it.
Make no mistake: Just because driving with an unlawfully high BAC makes a person liable for your injuries does not mean you don’t need to work with an attorney. There is still the question of how much compensation you are owed. You can count on the at-fault party’s insurance company making every attempt to keep the settlement as low as they can.
You can also count on Greg Jackson Law to do everything we can to make the settlement as high as possible. Remember that a drunk driver does not make a sympathetic defendant. At Greg Jackson Law, I have decades of experience and am ready to put that experience to work for you. Call me now at (817) 926-1003: We’re here to help.
