What Do You Do When You Are Hit by a Drunk Driver

Impaired drivers cause some of the more serious car accidents in the United States every year. If you are in an accident with a person who is convicted of drunk driving, you will likely be able to recover the full amount of your damages—without taking it to trial.

Contact Douglas & London to speak with our drunk driving accident attorney. We will make sure that you will receive the entire amount of compensation that you are entitled to receive under the state’s “no-fault” insurance laws.

Contact the Police After an Accident with a Drunk Driver

In every car accident, you need to exchange contact and insurance information with the other driver. If you suspect that the other driver is impaired, immediately report your suspicions to the police. Your suspicions alone will not prove the other driver is drunk. The police are authorized to perform field sobriety and blood tests to prove the other driver’s impairment.

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Report the Car Crash to Your Insurance Company and Collect Necessary Documents and Information

Although you have 30 days to file an accident report with your insurer, you should immediately report an accident with a drunk driver. This will enable you and your claims adjuster to gather the necessary materials. This information will support insurance reimbursement for all of your losses and injuries. At a minimum, you and your adjuster should procure:

• copies of any police reports prepared by investigating officers;
• photographs of all vehicles involved in the accident, and of the full accident scene;
• vehicle damage estimates for your car;
• medical reports and records that describe any injuries you sustained in an accident;
• copies of DUI or DWI charges filed against the drunk driver, and records of any convictions for the drunk driving incident.

Recover Compensation for your Losses and Injuries

New York’s “no-fault” insurance laws require you first to deal directly with your insurance company. This will allow you to recover compensation for your medical costs and expenses, even if the drunk driver was 100% at fault. However, your insurance will provide reimbursement only up to the state’s threshold (which is $50,000) and the limits of your policy. If your damages and losses are more than those limits, you can then contact a personal injury attorney to file a lawsuit directly against the drunk driver.

In addition, you can also seek to recover damages in that lawsuit for your pain and suffering associated with significant injuries and fatalities.

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File Your Claims Promptly

A person who suffers injuries in New York as a result of someone else’s negligence has three years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit. Resolving all of the issues after an accident with a drunk driver can be a complex matter, particularly when you are working within the state’s no-fault insurance environment.

To verify that you do not miss any important deadlines, your best course of action is to retain a knowledgeable and experienced automobile accident lawyer. They can deal with all of the parties, including insurance companies. The fees personal injury lawyer charges will likely be paid out of the damages they recover.

Call the New York Car Accident Lawyers at Douglas & London After You Have Been in an Accident with a Drunk Driver

We work tirelessly to keep drunk drivers off the roads by seeking to hold them liable for the full amount of damages and losses. We recover compensation from their insurers under New York State’s no-fault laws and from the drunk drivers themselves.

Please see our website or call Douglas & London directly to schedule a confidential and private consultation with our New York City personal injury lawyers. We can help you recover the damages you deserve after a drunk driver causes your car crash.