Have you sustained injuries in a car accident caused by a drunk driver in Kentucky? If so, you might be in pain and struggling to pay your bills while you’re too hurt to work. That’s wrong. You should never have to pay the price of someone else’s reckless decision. State law says you can pursue compensation for your injuries and related losses by filing a personal injury claim against the drunk driver and their insurance company.
At Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer, our Lexington injury lawyers have the courage it takes to stand up to bad actors who harm our clients. Our relentless and diligent work ethic has helped us secure hundreds of millions of dollars in fair compensation for injured people just like you. Call (877) 809-5352 or contact us online for a free case review with an accomplished drunk driving accident lawyer.
Why You Need a Drunk Driving Accident Attorney
When you get hurt by a drunk driver, it’s tempting to assume the legal system will handle everything for you. But even if law enforcement officers do their jobs and arrest the drunk driver, a criminal conviction will not provide fair compensation for your injuries and related losses.
The only way to demand money for your hospital bills, lost wages, and other expenses from the crash is by filing a civil injury claim against the drunk driver. The outcome of the prosecutor’s criminal trial against the drunk driver has no direct impact on your civil case, and you must prove the drunk driver caused your injuries to hold them liable. Justice and accountability are on the line, so you need an experienced drunk driving accident lawyer to help you present the strongest case possible.
When you work with the Lexington personal injury attorneys at Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer, you can count on us to support you through the claims process by:
- Explaining your rights and estimating a fair value for your case
- Identifying all possible sources of compensation for your crash injuries
- Conducting an independent investigation into the accident
- Communicating with the other driver and their insurer on your behalf
- Obtaining medical records, crash reports, toxicology results, and other evidence for your claim
- Interviewing eyewitnesses and reliable experts for valuable supporting testimony
- Managing essential case documents, details, and deadlines on your behalf
- Negotiating aggressively to maximize your drunk driving settlement value
Types of DUI Accident Cases We Handle
At Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer, we handle all types of DUI accident cases, including those involving:
Driving Under the Influence (DUI) of Alcohol
This type of crash comes to mind when most people think of a DUI. When drivers get behind the wheel after too many drinks, they are more likely to cause accidents for several reasons.
First, alcohol impairs muscle coordination, reducing a drunk driver’s ability to steer safely, focus, or react swiftly to imminent traffic hazards. Alcohol also impacts visual function, making it harder for drivers to track moving objects, identify and process traffic signals, and look out for danger.
Alcohol also affects key driving abilities like judgment, self-control, short-term memory, information processing, concentration, and external perception. The more alcohol a person consumes, the more pronounced their impairment will be and the greater their chance of causing devastating drunk driving wrecks.
Driving While Impaired by Drugs
Many DUI accidents also involve drivers under the influence of cannabis, other illicit drugs, and even certain prescription drugs. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), drugs are a factor in roughly 16 percent of motor vehicle accidents nationwide.
Many types of drugs can impair driving abilities, and drugged driving is often more difficult to detect than drunk driving because there is no foolproof way to spot-test drivers for drug use. This is troublesome because cannabis use is increasing rapidly in the U.S., with 13 percent of nighttime drivers testing positive for cannabis in their systems on weekends. Additionally, cannabis users are reportedly 25 percent more likely to crash than drivers who don’t use it.
Like alcohol, cannabis use makes driving dangerous because it impairs coordination, perception, memory, reaction time, and problem-solving abilities. Every drug affects people differently, but many non-cannabis and non-alcohol drugs are hazardous due to their effects on brain function, mood, and judgment.
Third-Party Liability
Drunk and drugged drivers are not the only parties that might be liable in a Kentucky DUI case. In some instances, third-party establishments could be responsible, too. These “dram shops” are businesses licensed to sell or serve alcohol, such as bars, restaurants, or liquor stores.
Kentucky Revised Statutes (K.R.S.) § 413.241 specifies that intoxicated persons are primarily liable for injuries they cause others. However, the law also provides that injured parties can hold vendors liable for selling or serving alcohol to an intoxicated person if a “reasonable person” in a similar situation could recognize the person was impaired at the time of serving. If the intoxicated person was under the legal drinking age, the same limits on dram shop liability do not apply.
No matter the particulars of your Kentucky drunk driving accident case, our trusted attorneys are here to help. We can guide you every step of the way as you seek to recover fair compensation for your injuries and hold negligent parties accountable.
Kentucky DUI Laws
The core of Kentucky’s DUI law is contained in K.R.S. §189A.010, which prohibits drivers from operating or having physical control of a motor vehicle when:
- They are 21 or older with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 or higher.
- They are under 21 with a BAC of 0.02 or higher.
- They are “under the influence” of alcohol, any other substance, or any combination of substances that impair driving ability.
- They are under the influence of a controlled substance, such as any Schedule I substance besides cannabis, cocaine, or methamphetamine.
Drivers convicted of DUI face criminal penalties, including fines, imprisonment, and the loss of driving privileges. Injured victims can also hold drunk drivers civilly liable through a personal injury claim. At Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer, we represent clients in civil claims only.
Kentucky Drunk Driving Statistics
The following statistics from the Kentucky Department of Transportation paint a shocking picture of the frequency and severity of drunk driving accidents in the Bluegrass State:
- In one recent year, alcohol was a contributing factor in 3,341 Kentucky motor vehicle collisions.
- That same year, 20 percent of all people killed in Kentucky car accidents were the victims of drunk driving accidents. Drugged driving accounted for 37 percent of all motor vehicle fatalities.
- Statistics showed 986 alcohol-related crashes resulted in injuries. Nearly 300 people sustained serious injuries, and over 600 suffered minor injuries. Police recorded an additional 500 possible injuries from drunk driving accidents.
- Teen drivers were involved in 243 alcohol-related crashes. Seven of those collisions were fatal, and 85 resulted in non-fatal injuries.
- Fayette County, home to the city of Lexington, had one of the highest rates of alcohol-related collisions in Kentucky. The county saw 140 alcohol-related crashes that year, six of which were fatal.
Average Settlement for Drunk Driving Accident Cases
There is no average settlement for drunk driving accident cases. Each case is unique. Without learning the specifics of your situation, it’s impossible to estimate your compensation.
Depending on the circumstances, you could recover compensation for the following personal and financial losses in a successful drunk driving accident claim:
- Hospital bills and medical costs
- Incidental expenses, such as travel costs for doctor’s appointments
- Lost wages
- Projected losses in earning potential if you suffer permanent impairment
- Subjective losses, such as your pain, suffering, and lost quality of life
Hit by a Drunk Driver? Talk to a Seasoned Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Today
The lawyers at Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer are proud to represent injured Kentuckians seeking justice after a DUI collision. Call our firm at (877) 809-5352 or fill out our online contact form to speak with a Lexington drunk driving accident attorney now.
