Fort Worth Drunk Driving Accident Attorneys

Zealous Advocacy for Victims of Drunk Drivers – Tarrant County DUI Accident Injury Lawyers

Motor vehicle accidents of all kinds claim an enormous toll in the form of serious injury, tragic loss of life, and billions of dollars in economic losses annually.  If you are involved in a serious auto accident and suffer substantial injuries, your life could be turned upside down. Hospital bills often pile up creating stress and anxiety that might be intensified if you are the family breadwinner.  The physical and emotional challenges associated with serious injuries suffered in a Fort Worth motor vehicle accident can make it difficult to focus on fighting with insurance companies and resolving legal hassles. When stress, physical challenges, and financial burdens are the product of an indifferent drunk driver, it is all the more tragic. Despite the enormous measures taken to end the scourge of DUI\DWI, drunk driving remains a leading cause of fatal crashes throughout Forth Worth and Tarrant County.

Improvements in DUI Accident Safety – But a Long Way to Go

In recent decades, significant progress has been achieved in addressing the problem of collisions caused by intoxicated drivers. A combination of factors has played a role in reducing DUI auto accidents in Fort Worth and across the U.S., such as:

• Use of ignition interlock devices
• Stiffer sentences for those convicted of drunk driving
• Establishment of a lower national .08% BAC standard
• Zero tolerance policies for teen drivers who use alcohol and drive
• Implementation of sobriety checkpoints and roving or saturation patrols
• Teen graduated driver’s license programs
• Public service campaigns aimed at informing drivers of the risk associated with mixing alcohol and driving
• Enactment of dram shop laws that impose liability on commercial servers and social hosts under certain circumstances

While these measures and others have done a great deal to address the problem of drunk driving fatalities in Foth Worth and throughout Texas, DUI\DWI offenders continue to claim the lives of those of all ages.  In excess of 10,000 people per year die in accidents involving drunk drivers throughout the United States.  During 2016, nearly a thousand people in Texas lost their lives because of alcohol impaired drivers.    Habitual drinkers pose the greatest risk of causing a fatal accident according to many safety experts. One study reported by MADD found that the average drunk driver climbs behind the wheel while drunk almost 90 times before suffering a first DUI arrest.  While it is tempting to presume that serious drunk driving accidents only happen to other people, one in three people in this country will be involved in an alcohol-related collision at some point in their life.

How Alcohol and Drunk Driving Contributes to Fatal Fort Worth DUI Accidents

Drunk drivers often have a false sense of confidence in their own ability to operate a motor vehicle when under the influence of alcohol.  This misperception often leads drivers under the influence of alcohol to exceed the speed limit.  When a drunk driver increases his or her speed, the driver has less response time to respond to a road hazard or curve in the road.  Drunk drivers typically exhibit a range of impaired driving skills that include:

• Slowed reaction times
• Impaired judgment and decision-making
• Decreased coordination and motor skills
• Distorted or impaired vision
• Dizziness or equilibrium problems

It is little wonder that these sorts of negative effects associated with driving while under the influence of alcohol result in a substantial number of tragic, fatal DUI accidents throughout Tarrant County. If you are injured in a motor vehicle accident with a drunk driver, the driver will generally be liable, as long as you can show that the driver caused your injuries. Because committing DUI/DWI amounts to gross negligence and shows a conscious disregard for human life, judges and juries frequently award substantial punitive damage awards in these types of cases.  Punitive damages are intended to punish conduct that is exceptionally egregious and to discourage such conduct in the future.

Fort Worth Drunk Driving Lawsuits – Litigation Considerations

Fort Worth drunk driving accidents tend to result in very serious injuries, so the alcohol-impaired driver has insufficient insurance to cover the cost of an accident victim’s injuries and damages.  However, our dedicated and experienced Fort Worth DUI accident attorneys frequently develop theories of liability that allow recovery from other potential defendants, including employers, parents, vehicle owners, and those who serve alcohol to the intoxicated driver.  FH Law Group has experience Texas drunk driving accident attorneys who will analyze the legal grounds for imposing liability on all potentially responsible parties.

The Texas dram shop law is part of the Alcoholic Beverage Code and allows a court to find a business that sells alcohol to an obviously intoxicated patron liable if the drunk customer causes a crash resulting in injury or death.  Customers must have been obviously intoxicated to the extent they posed a danger to their own safety or the safety of others if they were sold alcohol.  When proving the obvious intoxication of the driver, our law firm might subpoena credit card receipts, interview employees or other customers, review security footage, or obtain other relevant evidence.  A minor also can sue a business that sells alcohol to underage drinkers if they incur injuries resulting from the sale of alcohol if the minors were intoxicated at the time of purchase.

Speak to a Drunk Driving Accident Injury Lawyer Today!

If you have been injured or lost a loved one to a drunk driver, our experienced Fort Worth DUI injury lawyers tenaciously pursue the fullest recovery for injury victims while striving to hold intoxicated drivers accountable.  At FH Law Group, we tenaciously pursue the maximum recovery for injury victims in Fort Worth and the surrounding areas of Tarrant County.  Contact us today for a FREE consultation at (817) 877-3031 or visit our website.