Driving while under the influence of alcohol is a reckless act. When you suffer an injury because someone chose to drive while drunk, you could hold the wrongdoer financially accountable.
Contact a local car accident attorney at Phillips Law Group to represent you in a civil claim against the drunk driver at-fault in your wreck. We could help you pursue the compensation you need and deserve after a drunk driving accident in Mesa or elsewhere in the state.
Holding Drunk Drivers Accountable for Their Actions
Drunk driving is against the law and someone who causes a road accident with alcohol in their system is likely to face criminal consequences including mandatory jail time. Although there may be satisfaction in knowing a drunk driver will be punished, a criminal sentence does not help make an injured person whole.
A civil lawsuit is the way for someone injured in a Mesa drunk driving crash to hold the driver responsible for their injuries. The intoxicated motorist could be responsible for paying the injured person’s:
- Medically necessary future treatment
- Medical costs, including rehabilitation expenses, prostheses, medications, and psychological counseling
- Lost wages and the value of any paid time off the injured person used during their recovery
- Diminished future earning capacity if the injured person cannot return to their job
- Incidental expenses like parking at medical appointments and household chores the injured person cannot perform due to their injuries
- Home renovations, an adaptive vehicle, or similar accommodations if the injuries left the accident victim permanently disabled
- Compensation for the injured person’s diminished quality of life (pain and suffering damages)
An injured person’s compensation is often limited by the drunk driver’s insurance coverage. The coverage might be insufficient to cover the losses of a badly injured accident victim. In that case, our team could identify other parties who might share responsibility for the accident.
Responsible Parties in a Drunk Driving Accident
A drunk driver is usually held responsible for any accident they are involved in. Other drivers, including an injured person, also could be partially liable for the accident if they were breaking the law or not using appropriate caution when the accident happened.
Third parties could also have partial responsibility for a drunk driving accident. For example, if the drunk driver was operating a commercial vehicle when they caused the crash, their employer would be liable. If the drunk driver was operating someone else’s vehicle with permission when the accident occurred, a Mesa attorney could claim the owner negligently entrusted it to the driver.
Additionally, when a bar or restaurant serves alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person or someone underage, Arizona Revised Statutes § 4-311 makes the establishment liable to someone injured due to the patron’s drunkenness. A social host who serves alcohol to someone younger than the legal drinking age also could be responsible for paying compensation to someone the young person hurt in a drunk driving car accident.
Process for Claiming Compensation After a Drunk Driving Accident
Someone injured in a Mesa drunk driving accident has two years from the date of the incident to file a lawsuit claiming compensation. However, waiting to secure legal representation until the deadline is approaching is unwise. Drunk driving accidents are often complex, and the quality of the accident investigation depends on reviewing evidence while it is available and interviewing witnesses when their memories are fresh.
When our attorneys represent a drunk driving accident victim, they could immediately request preservation of potentially critical evidence like a vehicle’s data recorder and dash cam, surveillance video of the crash scene, and any video evidence showing the driver before they got into the wreck. We could also investigate the driver’s insurance coverage and work to identify any other parties who could have responsibility.
Asserting claims against multiple parties helps ensure that enough insurance coverage is available to properly compensate an injured person. Most claims end in settlement, but a Mesa attorney always builds a case that will stand up in court if it is necessary to litigate the claim.
Contact a Mesa Attorney if You Were Injured in a Drunk Driving Accident
The law makes negligent and reckless people pay for the harm they cause. Take action against the irresponsible driver who caused an accident that injured you or your loved one.
Contact the Phillips Law Group after being involved in a drunk driving car accident in Mesa. We have been representing people like you for decades and are eager to put our experience to work for you. Call today to speak with a knowledgeable attorney.
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