If you’re in a car crash with a driver who consumed alcohol, you might decide to sue them. You don’t necessarily have to, but you might feel like it’s the best idea under certain circumstances. If that happens, you will presumably want to hire an attorney who you feel will do the best job for you.
A DUI accident lawyer can help you collect the maximum in damages, and they can also give you advice as you get closer to the trial date. Your lawyer will likely give you advice tailored to the situation in which you find yourself. However, there’s also some standard advice that such attorneys will usually give you after an alcohol-related crash.
Let’s talk about what some of those most common pieces of advice might sound like.
You Should Probably Sue if You’re in an At-Fault State
First, you’ll likely go to see your would-be lawyer after the car wreck to discuss a potential lawsuit. You probably found them by doing some online research. The personal injury lawyer you’ll want to hire should have plenty of experience with alcohol-related crashes.
You can tell them what happened. When they hear the details, they will either agree that you have a potential lawsuit on your hands or disagree that it’s worth pursuing one.
If you’re in an at-fault state, that often makes it more likely that your lawyer will tell you to sue the other driver. If you’re in an at-fault state, that means the insurance company of the driver who caused the wreck should pay for the economic damages. Those include things like the cost to repair the car, lost wages if you have to miss work, or the cost of medical bills.
If you’re in a no-fault state, your insurance would cover those economic damages, and you might not need to sue. If you’re in an at-fault state, though, and the other driver won’t admit they caused the accident, or their insurance company won’t admit it, then you will likely need to sue to recoup those losses.
If you have evidence that the other driver drove drunk and hit your car, you’re in an at-fault state, and the other driver or their insurance company won’t admit their guilt, that’s a trifecta that almost always require you to sue. You need to do so to collect compensation for your economic damages, and the fact that the other driver drove drunk and hit you makes it likely you can file a lawsuit and win. That’s always assuming, or course, that you have a competent lawyer on your side.
You Might Also Be Able to Claim Non-Economic Damages
Your lawyer may also suggest that you can probably try to claim non-economic damages in this lawsuit if you decide to pursue them. Non-economic damages include compensation that you think you should get for something like pain and suffering.
If you needed to have surgery after the accident or you had to go through physical therapy sessions to get back on your feet afterward, then you can certainly try to get financial compensation for your pain and suffering. You may also try to get additional compensation if you have a PTSD diagnosis after the accident.
Collecting these types of non-economic damages along with economic ones after an accident where the other driver consumed alcohol often becomes a viable option. You can likely get the jury on your side with no issues, since they can probably put themselves in your shoes pretty easily.
Don’t Negotiate Directly with the Other Driver
During the time leading up to the trial, assuming the lawsuit ever gets that far, your lawyer will probably advise you not to communicate directly with the other driver. When you hire your attorney, they might tell you to let them handle all communication with the other driver and their legal team going forward.
If the other driver tries to communicate with you, and you agree to talk to them, it’s almost always a mistake. They might beg you to drop the lawsuit, and that will be awkward for you.
By communicating with the other driver and their legal team only through your own lawyer, it helps to keep things professional. You should only talk to the other driver when you have your lawyer present, and then you should only respond to whatever they have to say after consulting with your attorney first.
Use Precedent When Determining an Appropriate Settlement Amount
Your lawyer might also advise you to look at precedent from former cases like yours to determine an appropriate amount in economic and non-economic damages that you might ask for from the other driver. You can probably determine how much in economic damages you might ask for just by adding up the expenses for which you had to pay. However, the amount in non-economic damages that you ask for might seem arbitrary.
That’s why it helps for your lawyer to look at precedent from similar cases and to suggest a number to you that you might try to get from the other driver. If the jury knows how much in damages similar lawsuits yielded, and you’re asking for a similar amount, it’s reasonably likely they will grant it to you.
You Can Always Turn Down the First Settlement Offer
Your lawyer might give you one additional piece of advice after a crash involving a drunk driver. They may tell you that you can always turn down the first settlement offer if the number doesn’t sound right to you.
Ultimately, as the plaintiff, you must decide whether to accept any settlement offer or not. The other driver and their lawyer might try to start the negotiations with a lowball number, though.
If your lawyer says that you can probably get more, then you might take that advice and suggest a larger number as a counteroffer. You can go on with the trial process if the other driver doesn’t agree.
