Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer in Centennial, CO
Being in a drunk driving accident can change your life for the worse. If you are fortunate enough to survive the accident, you are likely to suffer serious injuries that will result in lifelong medical assistance. Maybe you are the survivor of a family member who unfortunately lost their life at the hands of a drunk driver. You and your family will be affected for the rest of your lives following the drunk driving accident. You should not have to suffer financially for another person’s poor actions reach out to a Centennial Drunk driving accident lawyer at Varner Faddis Elite Legal.
What Varner Faddis Elite Legal Brings To The Table
When you or a family member have suffered a severe injury in a drunk driving accident, you want to be represented by a law firm that does not treat you like another number. You want a law firm that takes a client-centered approach to your lawsuit and uses strategic planning to ensure that your lawsuit ends in your desired result.
At Varner Faddis Elite Legal, our experienced personal injury lawyers combine diligence, experience, and creativity to provide top-notch representation to each client. One of our Founding Partners of a former Deputy District Attorney who used to prosecute drunk driving offenders. In five years, we have resolved many cases, obtaining six and seven-figure settlements and awards for our clients.
We also work to improve the protections for car accident victims under the law. For example, we recently played a role in passing a new Colorado law that provides more coverage for victims of hit-and-run rideshare accidents.
We have a commitment to justice and improving your protections under the law.
How Varner Faddis Elite Legal Can Help You
When filing a lawsuit for your drunk driving accident you want to maximize your chances of winning your lawsuit as much as possible. This is how the experienced personal injury lawyers at Varner Faddis Elite Legal can help you. We focus on using an innovative, modern, and client-centered approach to help our clients receive the desired outcomes they want. We use the following characteristics to our advantage when representing our clients:
Cutting Edge Technology
Our experienced personal injury lawyers use the most cutting-edge case management technology when creating the best strategies for our clients. This technology helps us keep track of every important aspect of our client’s case and allows us to focus specifically on our client.
A Personalized Approach
Our injury lawyers take the time to keep our clients informed throughout every step of the process. While other personal injury lawyers will barely take the time to answer their client’s phone calls, we use every mode of communication possible to keep in touch with our clients. Our clients can reach us through phone, text, and email and ask as many questions as they like.
Creative Solutions
What separates our lawyers is our ability to offer creative solutions to achieve success for our clients’ lawsuits. We take the time to investigate different solutions that are result-oriented and offer our clients the best forms of compensation possible. One of our firm partners, Lauren Varner, is a prime example of how we value creative solutions. She has settled many pre-suit cases without taking the at-fault parties to trial, something that rarely happens.
Case Results
Our lawyers recovered $1,130,000 in one case, $1,250,000 in another, and $800,000 in yet another. The average settlement amount for our clients in wrongful death lawsuits is $750,000, though these outcomes vary based on many factors including the amount of insurance coverage available.
The Dangers of Drunk Driving
Our law firm has represented thousands of injured clients due to drunk driving accidents. From the time many Colorado residents pursue their driving licenses, they receive warnings of the dangers of drunk driving. Drunk driving is a phenomenon that injures the drunk driver and the unfortunate bystanders along the way.
When a driver decides to consume alcohol, they deliberately alter their brain functions. The ability to make sound judgments and decisions is seriously affected by the consumption of alcohol. Even though drivers understand this, they still place themselves and others at risk by getting behind the wheel after drinking.
How Often Does Drunk Driving Happen?
One of the biggest misconceptions about drunk driving is that drivers who commit this offense only engage in it once. While some drunk drivers may commit the offense once, many drunk drivers are repeat offenders.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) reports that one-third of all drunk drivers who have been arrested or convicted of drunk driving are repeat offenders. In total, a driver will have driven drunk at least 80 times before being arrested.
Common Reasons For Drunk Driving
Drunk drivers give two reasons why they decide to get behind the wheel after drinking.
Lack of other modes of transportation
Drunk drivers claim that there are no other means of transportation to get home safely. There are multiple options that people who have been drinking can exercise, from calling a Lyft or Uber to staying the night to selecting a designated driver.
Overestimating their abilities
Drunk drivers mistakenly assume that they can still operate their vehicles as they would if they were not drunk. It is not until it is too late that drunk drivers realize they cannot drive and react safely on the roadways.
Failing to monitor alcohol consumption
There are multiple occasions when people have had too much to drink and cannot handle their liquor. Often, it is because the person has not consumed enough food to help absorb the alcohol. Even if the driver has consumed some food while drinking, they may not experience the effects of being drunk until about 20 or 30 minutes after they have been behind the wheel.
Top Drunk Driving Areas in Colorado
In a recent year, 691 people died in alcohol-related motor vehicle accidents on Colorado roadways.
Some of the Colorado locations with the most drunk driving include:
- Longmont. There are 43.63 Longmont drivers out of 1,000 drivers who have a DUI on their record.
- Golden. Out of 1,000 drivers, 45.15 Golden drivers with a DUI charge on their record.
- Fort Collins. There are 46.93 Fort Collins drivers out of 1,000 charged with a DUI.
- Loveland. Loveland contains the highest rate of drivers with a DUI, with an astonishing 61.95 drivers out of 1,000.
How Drunk Driving Affects Lives
Drunk driving can leave lifelong consequences. Each day, 29 people die in drunk driving accidents. The victims who miraculously survive drunk driving accidents can still experience insurmountable pain from their injuries.
Some of the catastrophic injuries that drunk driving victims endure include:
- Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs)
- Spinal cord injuries (SCIs)
- Burns
- Amputations
- Nerve damage
- Organ damage
Compensation for Drunk Driving Accidents
When you have been the victim of a drunk driving accident, you will suffer serious injuries from your accident. Because your injuries can be permanent and irreversible, you deserve more compensation. Drunk driving accident victims with catastrophic injuries need more compensation for the lifelong medical assistance that their injuries require.
Some of the common types of compensation that drunk driving accident victims pursue in their lawsuits include medical treatment, lost earnings, pain and suffering, and burial expenses.
Medical treatment
Drunk driving accident victims may require in-home medical care, surgery, physical therapy, wound care, and prescription medications. These medical services can become quite costly over the years.
Lost earnings
A victim’s injuries can cause the victim to take time off from work. The victim’s injuries can be so severe that they may have to consider seeking a new occupation or relying on other assistance for their expenses.
Pain and suffering
Drunk driving accidents can cause victims to experience lifelong mental and physical anguish. Drunk driving accidents can cause victims to experience mental disorders such as PTSD and anxiety following the accident. The psychological damage that drunk driving causes can stay with the victim long after the accident.
Burial expenses
If you have lost a loved one in a drunk driving accident, you can sue for burial expenses. You and your family can seek compensation for any expenses you have paid for your family’s funeral arrangements.
FAQs
How many parties can you hold liable in a drunk driving accident?
Depending on the circumstances of your accident, there are several parties aside from the drunk driver who can be held liable for your accident. If the drunk driver is not the vehicle owner that was involved in your accident, you can also sometimes hold the owner liable for your injuries. If the drunk driver consumed alcohol from a particular vendor, that vendor may also be liable for your injuries.
What are the penalties that drunk drivers can face outside of a lawsuit?
There are several legal penalties for drunk drivers. Drunk drivers who acquire a first-offense DUI can face jail time that ranges from five days to one year. In addition to jail time, they will have to pay a fine that ranges from $600 to $1,000. First-offense DUI drivers will also have to perform up to 96 hours of community service and deal with a driver’s license revocation period of nine months, depending on the circumstances. The more DUI offenses a driver acquires, the more severe the penalties.
None of this, however, will pay for your injuries. For that, you will need to call us so we can file a civil claim to recover the compensation you deserve.
What are the blood alcohol content (BAC) levels that prove drivers are under the influence?
Colorado drivers cannot operate a motor vehicle if they have a blood alcohol content (BAC) level of 0.08 percent or higher. Drivers who have this BAC level or higher are highly likely to face a DUI charge. However, if drivers have a BAC between 0.05 percent and 0.08 percent, they will likely be charged with the lesser offense of driving while intoxicated (DWI).
How much time do I have to file a lawsuit against the drunk driver?
In Colorado, personal injury victims have a period known as the statute of limitations. The statute of limitations is the required period for all personal injury victims to file a lawsuit against the at-fault parties of their accident. For victims of motor vehicle collisions, the period is three years from the date of accident or date of injury. When you file a lawsuit past this period, the other party’s legal counsel can use that fact to throw your lawsuit out.
Do I have to wait until a drunk driver has been criminally convicted of a DUI charge to file a lawsuit?
No. If a drunk driver has injured you, you have the right to file a personal injury lawsuit against the drunk driver before they have even had to face prosecution for a DUI. As an injured party, you have a certain amount of time to file against the drunk driver to recover any damages from your injuries. Even if the drunk driver is in the middle of the legal repercussions of their accident, you can still file a claim against the drunk driver.
What types of lawsuits can I file for my drunk driving accident?
The types of lawsuits that you can file for your drunk driving accident depend on the circumstances of your accident. You can file a personal injury lawsuit against the drunk driver for your injuries. You can file a wrongful death lawsuit if you lost a loved one from a drunk driving accident. If the drunk driver was allowed to leave a bar or restaurant after consuming alcohol, you may be able to file a dram shop or premises liability lawsuit.
Contact an Experienced Centennial Drunk Driving Accident Today
At Varner Faddis Elite Legal, LLC, we seriously take the injuries you sustain from your drunk driving accident. These injuries will affect you and your family’s quality of life forever. Our mission is to use our innovative and personalized approach to law to help you and your family receive the compensation you deserve. We promise to use our diligent and creative experience to fight for you and your family’s rights.
While you can represent yourself in your injury claim, it is likely not in your best interests. The legal system can be complicated and challenging to navigate. Reach out to a Centennial personal injury lawyer.
Contact us for a free case evaluation to find out how we can best represent you and fight for your compensation. We serve the Denver Metro Area, South Denver, the Denver Tech Center (DTC), Aurora, Centennial, Greenwood Village, Parker, and other locations across the state. Call our office at 720-710-9073 for your free initial consultation today.
Office
6025 South Quebec St.
Suite 100
Centennial, CO 80111
Phone: 720-710-9073
