The drunk driving laws in Greenville, and throughout South Carolina, are very strict for good reason.
Drunk driving is one of the most dangerous behaviors any motorist could engage in when they are on the road. Drunk drivers have slower reaction times, poor judgment, and lower muscle coordination.
Drunk drivers can face criminal penalties for getting behind the wheel while impaired, but these will not compensate you for your injuries and other losses. To obtain compensation, you must file a personal injury claim.
The personal injury process is not an easy one. Our Greenville drunk driving accident lawyers can help you through it so you obtain the maximum damages you deserve.
Determining Liability for a Drunk Driving Accident
It is natural to assume that after a drunk driving accident, the liable party is the impaired motorist.
While you can certainly pursue a claim against any drunk driver, there may be other parties who share some of the blame, as well. It is critical to investigate the crash and determine how the driver became drunk before causing your serious injuries.
Under the Alcohol and Alcoholic Beverage Control Act in South Carolina, restaurants, bars, and other establishments that serve alcohol are prohibited from serving individuals who are obviously impaired or drunk. Social hosts who serve alcohol to their guests at their homes must also comply with the same law. While these hosts and establishments can be held civilly liable for any accident caused by someone who was over-served, they may also face criminal penalties if the accident was caused by someone under the legal drinking age.
Our Greenville drunk driving accident lawyer can pursue compensation on your behalf from any social host or establishment that served someone alcohol when they were impaired. We can interview witnesses and review video footage so you obtain the full compensation you deserve.
How to File a Drunk Driving Accident Claim
All car accidents in South Carolina, including those involving drunk drivers, are governed by tort law.
This means that after you have been involved in a crash, you must file a claim with the liable, or at-fault, party’s insurance company.
When filing a claim, it is important to identify all liable parties, including the driver and anyone who over-served them. Defendants in drunk driving cases are only liable for paying up to the limits of their insurance policy. When there are multiple liable parties, you can file a claim with each of their insurance companies, allowing you to pursue more compensation.
Although drunk driving is very erroneous behavior, there are times when accident victims are also found partly at fault for a crash. For example, if a drunk driver ran a stop sign, but you were also texting while driving so you did not see them approaching the intersection, you may be found partly to blame. Under South Carolina’s comparative negligence law, you can still file a claim for compensation as long as you were 50 percent or less at fault. Any damages you are awarded, however, will be reduced by your same percentage of fault.
Compensation Available After a Drunk Driving Accident
If you are successful with your personal injury claim, you can obtain compensation for all of your injuries and other losses. No one can determine how much compensation you are entitled to without first fully analyzing the facts of your case. Still, there are some guidelines you can use to estimate how much compensation you deserve. The most common types of compensation awarded in drunk driving accident claims are as follows:
- Medical expenses: Drunk driving causes some of the most serious injuries. You can pursue compensation for emergency room costs, transport to and from the hospital, surgeries, ongoing treatment, follow-up appointments, physical therapy, and more.
- Lost income: The injuries sustained during a drunk driving accident are so serious, you may not be able to return to work for some time. You can include your lost wages in your claim, as well as any lost vacation pay, sick pay, employment benefits, and more.
- Loss of earning capacity: If your injuries are so severe that you cannot return to the same line of work in the future and must accept a lower-paying job, you can pursue compensation for a loss of earning capacity. This is the difference between the wages you earned before the accident and those you are able to earn afterward.
- Pain and suffering: Not all injuries are visible. As you recover, you will likely feel a great deal of physical pain and emotional distress. Together, these losses are known as pain and suffering. While not as visible as your physical injuries, these are still losses you will sustain and you deserve compensation for them.
Due to the fact that drunk driving is such egregious behavior, you may also be able to pursue punitive damages. These are compensatory damages but rather, they are intended to punish the defendant and deter them and others from acting similarly in the future. Punitive damages are rarely awarded, but they are more likely in drunk driving accident cases.
Statute of Limitations in Drunk Driving Accident Claims
Like all personal injury cases in Greenville, drunk driving accidents are governed by a statute of limitations, or time limit. As throughout South Carolina, you have just three years from the date of the crash to file your claim. If the statute of limitations expires before you have filed your claim, you will be barred from receiving any compensation at all.
Our Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer in Greenville Can Help with Your Case
Drunk driving accidents will result in some of the most serious injuries. You should not be responsible for paying for your medical bills, making up lost income, and more. At McCravy, Newlon, Sturkie, & Clardy, our Greenville drunk driving accident lawyers can help you through the claims process so you obtain the full and fair compensation you justly deserve. Call us now at 866-MCCRAVY or contact us online to schedule a free legal consultation with our experienced attorney today and to get the legal help you need.