Raleigh Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer

Drunk drivers place people’s lives at risk every time they get on the road. With diminished reaction times and impaired motor skills, their driving becomes erratic and dangerous. As the victim of a DUI accident, your life could be turned upside-down in an instant. One minute, you are going about your daily routine, and suddenly, nothing will ever be the same again. And it all could have been avoided if it weren’t for the driver’s negligence.

If you or someone you know was injured in a drunk driving accident and you are looking for legal help, reach out to the Raleigh car accident lawyers at the Whitley Law Firm. It will cost you nothing to meet with our drunk driving accident team, and it may change your future for the better. Call (919) 785-5000 or send us an email today.

Recoverable Damages After You’re Hit by a Drunk Driver in Raleigh

When you are injured in an accident caused by a drunk driver, the effects can be devasting on your life. It can leave you with medical bills, missed work, and many other accident-related expenses. If the drunk driver is found liable, they will be responsible for covering the costs. These can include:

• Your medical bills, now and in the future
• The loss of any current wages and future income
• The cost of any disabled access equipment
• The cost of caretakers
• The cost of medical transportation
• The value of your pain and suffering
• Funeral and burial expenses in fatal drunk driving accidents

Your personal injury attorney will use evidence to prove the value of your claim. Be sure to keep all of your accident-related bills and documentation together in a safe place.

How a Raleigh Drunk Driver Accident Lawyer Can Help You

If you are injured by a drunk driver in an accident in North Carolina, our personal injury lawyer can navigate the legal system on your behalf. They can:

• Conduct a thorough investigation to establish the drunk driver’s liability, collecting evidence to prove the driver’s intoxication and fault
• Identify all potentially liable parties—like a restaurant over-serving alcohol to the driver, which is illegal according to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 18B-305
• Determine the full scope of your damages from medical bills to lost wages to pain and suffering
• Manage negotiations with the drunk driver’s insurance company to obtain fair compensation
• File a drunk driving lawsuit if a satisfactory settlement cannot be secured
• Have expert witnesses like accident reconstructionists substantiate claims
• Highlight the egregious behavior of drunk driving to fight for additional punitive damages

The inexcusable actions of drunk drivers cause immense harm. A drunk driving attorney in Raleigh can stand up for your rights and hold all responsible parties fully accountable.

Understanding North Carolina’s Contributory Negligence Rule

In North Carolina, the person who caused a car wreck is responsible for damages. But the state has “pure contributory negligence” laws that could eliminate your compensation based on your percentage of fault. This means insurance companies will try to blame the victim, even a little bit, to avoid paying.

The insurance company may say you were also negligent in some small way that led to the accident. But at Whitley Law Firm, our Raleigh personal injury lawyers know how to fight these arguments. They can show how the other driver was at fault in the wreck and you deserve compensation for your losses.

Our accident attorney will strongly make your case and refute poor defenses. We will hold the at-fault driver responsible.

Filing a Claim When a Drunk Driving Accident Involves Multiple Vehicles

When an impaired driver gets behind the wheel, the result can be an accident that involves many vehicles. When this happens, it may lead to multiple injuries and competing personal injury claims. This can lead to a complex claim due to the fact that:

• Multiple parties may share fault in the wreck
• Different plaintiffs may give different versions of the event
• The drunk driver’s insurance may not by enough to cover multiple settlements
• The case may take longer to settle

Your injury attorney will examine the facts of your case and identify all potentially liable parties to make sure we can get compensation from anyone who shares fault.

To learn more about your case, call the Whitley Law Firm today at (919) 785-5000. Our legal team is ready to discuss your case in a free case consultation.

How Long It Takes to Settle a DUI Accident Claim in Raleigh, NC

How long it takes to resolve a drunk driving accident case in Raleigh depends on many factors. One of the main things that will affect the length of the settlement process is whether the drunk driver’s insurance accepts fault quickly. If they don’t, you can expect your case to take longer to reach a fair settlement.

Another key factor in the duration of your DUI accident claim is negotiations. Your Raleigh drunk driving accident lawyer must negotiate to get full and fair payment from the insurer. Very complex cases with lots of injuries and damages take longer to calculate and settle on.

So, there’s no single timeline. Simple cases may resolve in weeks or months. But complicated cases with reluctant insurers can take years before finally settling. Our attorneys knows how to handle such delays and can push for the compensation you need as efficiently as possible.

Statute of Limitations for Car Accidents in North Carolina

The statute of limitations is a deadline that states how long you have to file a personal injury claim. This limit is set at the state level, so it’s different in every state. In North Carolina, if you’re hit by a drunk driver, according to N.C. Gen. Stat. §1-52, you generally have three years to file a personal injury case.

In North Carolina, the statute of limitation is different if you are filing a claim for a fatal injury caused by a drunk driver. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1-53, if a drunk driving accident has resulted in a fatality, you typically have two years from the date of death to file.

There are certain exceptions to these statutes of limitations. If you’re wondering what the time limit is in your case, you could find out through a free consultation with our firm.  A personal injury lawyer serving Raleigh with the Whitley Law Firm can explain which statutes of limitations and their exceptions apply to your case.

Drunk Driving Accident Liability in North Carolina Explained

In a drunk driving accident, more people may be held responsible for the crash than just the intoxicated driver.

As we mentioned above, the establishment that served alcoholic beverages to the guilty driver could be held liable as well, and this is because of dram shop laws. This liability could occur in cases where an injurious or fatal DWI crash occurs after someone was over-served, or when a minor was sold alcohol.

What this means is that a drunk driver’s insurance may not be the only source of compensation. You may be able to collect compensation for your medical bills, car damage, lost wages, and more from another negligent party, in this case, the person or place responsible for providing alcohol.

Types of Drunk Driving Accidents Our Injury Lawyers Represent

When a drunk driver gets behind the wheel, they can injure anyone on the roadway, including other drivers, pedestrians, and bicyclists. These are the types of accidents we represent if they are caused by a drunk driver’s negligence:

• Car accidents
• Bicycle accidents
• Motorcycle accidents
• Truck accidents
• Pedestrian accidents
• Catastrophic injury accidents
• Fatal accidents

Our drunk driving attorneys in Raleigh can represent your claim if you were involved in any type of drunk driving accident, including if a drunk driver injures you because they left the road entirely and crashed into your home.

North Carolina Drunk Driving Accident Statistics

Drunk driving accidents in North Carolina are on the rise. According to North Carolina’s 2021 Traffic Crash Facts, drunk drivers caused 12,264 accidents, leading to 407 fatalities and 8,100 injuries. Overall, drunk drivers caused 22.8 percent of all traffic accident fatalities in the state that year.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that approximately one-third of fatal auto accidents involve a driver with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or greater. This is the limit at which a driver is considered to be “driving while impaired” or DWI, as under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-138.1.

When you consider the high percentage of accidents that involve drunk drivers, it is important to get information about what you can do as the victim of a drunk driving accident. When you call our law offices, we will offer you information and guidance that is applicable to your specific case.

Our Raleigh drunk driving accident lawyers will talk to you about what we can do to help and will offer you much-needed support so you can make the right choices about your claim against the drunk driver who caused your injuries.

Contact a Raleigh Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Today

We have several offices conveniently located in North Carolina, with locations in Raleigh. Please reach out to one of our Raleigh drunk driving accident lawyers from the Whitley Law Firm today. You can contact us online or by phone at (919) 785-5000.

We look forward to assisting you with your personal injury claim and helping you recover physically, emotionally, and financially from your tragic accident.