Statistics show that around one and a half million motor vehicle accidents that involve drivers under the influence of alcohol happen in the United States each year. Around 350,000 of these accidents result in injuries and 10,000 (averaging above one every hour) result in fatalities.
Nearly one in three people will be in a DUI related accident at some point in their lives. Even though awareness and arrests (around 1.4 million per year) are increasing, inebriated drivers still make our roads and highways more dangerous than they already are.
If you or someone you love has been seriously injured or killed in a DUI accident in Pennsylvania please contact the Law Offices of www.needaninjuryattorneypennsylvania.com for a free consultation with one our expert Pennsylvania DUI injury attorneys today.
Large damage awards occur frequently in lawsuits filed against drunk drivers because of public scorn for those who cause accidents that result in injury or death because someone made the extremely reckless and careless decision to get behind the wheel while drunk.
Awards can near tens of millions of dollars. In these high penalty cases, punitive damages often take up the majority of the compensation awarded. Juries are usually very sympathetic to the victims of drunk drivers who suffered injury or death. Victims who survive DUI accidents with serious injuries are often subjected to multiple surgeries and may need frequent and long-term care, which result in hefty medical bills. The pain suffered in the accident is horrible enough, but some victims have to deal with long-term or even permanent pain. Some victims are rendered permanently disabled by the accident, dashing their dreams and sending their life on a radically different course than it was on before the tragic events caused by a drunk driver.
A person driving while under the influence isn’t a rare occurrence. According to estimates released by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) events where a person drinks and drives occurred 112 million times in 2010. That is nearly 300,000 times per day. Arrests occur in barely more than 1 percent of these incidents.
In the same year, almost one-third of all highway fatalities are caused by drunk drivers. That’s 10,228 deaths, or 28 each day. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) points out that although the rates have been declining in recent years, every year about 345,000 people sustain injuries from a DUI related accident.
The initial trauma of an accident is enough to deal with. Depending on the severity of injuries, DUI accident victims may have a long, painful road ahead of them dealing with the pain and suffering and expenses that stemmed from an accident that wasn’t their fault. Seeking the advice of an expert DUI injury attorney at www.needaninjuryattorneypennsylvania.com is the first step. After your free consultation, our dedicated attorneys can begin to fight for the compensation you need to pay for medical bills, lost wages, as well as compensation for the pain and suffering someone else’s reckless actions caused you. Contact us today.