North Druid Hills Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer

North Druid Hills is a great place to live, having both a suburban feel and proximity to Atlanta. Even so, those in the North Druid Hills area, whether in cars or pedestrians, can become victims of drunk driving accidents. Drunk driving accidents bring tragic results, causing severe injuries and death. 

Victims need compensation for their losses and deserve justice. A North Druid Hills drunk driving accident attorney from John Foy & Associates will fight hard to ensure victims see financial restoration and justice served. 

Costs of Drunk Driving Accidents

For the last year of financial data collection, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration calculated the tangible losses caused by an alcohol-impaired driving accident as $44 billion. When quality-of-life losses were included, those costs rose to $202.1 billion.

Lives Lost in Alcohol-Impaired Driving Accidents

While those financial losses are shocking, even more tragic is the loss of human life. For the most recent full year of data collection, the NHTSA reports drunk driving accidents led to the deaths of 11,654 people:

• 229 were children
• 7281 were operating a vehicle while intoxicated
• 1543 were passengers in a vehicle driven by a drunk driver
• 1605 were occupants of other vehicles
• 1225 were pedestrians, cyclists, or other non-occupants. 

For the same year, the Georgia Department of Driver Services reported 12,008 drunk driving fatalities in the state, 25 of which occurred in DeKalb County.

These losses to society and families are preventable and completely unacceptable. If you or a loved one is hurt by a drunk driver, you can recover your financial losses and help society hold impaired drivers accountable by filing a civil suit. 

The Effects of Alcohol on Driving Ability

In Utah, a person driving with a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of .05% or higher can face criminal charges for driving drunk. In Georgia and all other states, the legal limit is .08% for drivers of private vehicles 21 years of age or older. For commercial vehicle drivers, the limit is .04%, and for drivers under age 21, it is .02%

A person’s BAC impacts their ability to drive safely. The higher the BAC, the greater the damage to their driving abilities. As explained by the NHTSA, alcohol affects drivers’:

• Judgment: This brain-centered activity helps drivers make quick decisions but is slower, less efficient, and less reliable when a person is under the influence.
• Vision: Alcohol causes blurred and double vision, impairs a driver’s ability to focus, and determines how far away they are from an object, person, or other vehicles on the road. With impaired vision, drivers easily drift from lane to lane, off the roadway, or into other cars. 
• Color Distinction: Alcohol impairment diminishes the ability to perceive color differences, making it difficult for drivers to see and respond to color-coded traffic signals, road signs, and road markings.
• Reaction Time: Alcohol reduces drivers’ alertness and ability to process and respond to information efficiently and causes drowsiness.

Drunk Driving Accidents Are Entirely Preventable and Drivers Must Be Held Accountable

All licensed drivers are educated about BAC and the dangers of driving while drunk. Anyone who engages in alcohol consumption has the option to designate a driver, call a rideshare vehicle or taxi, or avail themselves of public transportation to avoid driving drunk and putting innocent people in danger.

When motorists drive drunk and injure others in an accident, they should pay for their victim’s losses and be held accountable for their negligence. To ensure you receive fair compensation and justice, put your case in the hands of a North Druid Hills drunk driving accident lawyer from John Foy & Associates.

Compensation Your Drunk Driving Accident Attorney in North Druid Hills Can Pursue

In the aftermath of your accident, you will likely need and pursue coverage for your:

• Medical care and costs related to your accident. These costs include those you will face in the future should your injuries require long-term attention.
• Income losses for time missed at work and for lost potential wages should you be unable to return to work.
• Suffering, from the physical pain of your injuries, the emotional trauma of the accident, and the emotional distress caused by the long-term consequences of your injuries.
• Loss of enjoyment of life, should your injuries prevent you from participating in events or activities or interacting with friends and loved ones as you did before you were injured.
• Wrongful death if your loved one was killed in the accident. This claim can recover related medical expenses, end-of-life costs, lost income, and loss of consortium.

Punitive Damages

While compensation recovers losses, punitive damages act as a punishment. When drivers operate their vehicles while impaired, they are choosing to put others at serious risk. Such callous disregard demands punishment, and hopefully, that punishment serves as a deterrent for other potentially impaired drivers.

Drunk Drivers May Not Be the Only Parties At Fault

The vehicle operator is not the only one culpable for your accident or losses. Under Georgia’s dram shop and social host laws, servers or sellers of alcohol may also bear fault.

Dram shop laws make it possible for victims of drunk driving accidents to file against alcohol servers or sellers, such as restaurants, bars, or liquor stores, when those sellers knowingly provide alcohol to minors. The statute also applies if they serve of-age individuals already showing signs of impairment. These laws also apply to “social hosts” or people who provide alcohol at parties or events held in their own homes.

An experienced drunk driving accident lawyer in North Druid Hills will know how to track down all responsible parties and work to ensure these laws are fairly applied.

You Can Depend on the Strong Arm of Justice to Deliver

Drunk driving accidents take so much from victims. While a financial settlement may not restore all of those losses, it will bring financial relief and, hopefully, some satisfaction in seeing justice served. 

By scheduling a free consultation with a North Druid drunk driving accident lawyer from John Foy & Associates, you can start working toward that relief. Contact us today.