Louisville DUI Accident Lawyer

DUI Accident Injury Attorney in Louisville, Kentucky

It is illegal for Louisville drivers to get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) greater than 0.08%. Once a driver has become intoxicated, the likelihood of a serious or even fatal accident increases exponentially. If someone has acted carelessly and put you and your loved ones at risk, they should be held accountable. An experienced Louisville DUI accident lawyer at The Schafer Law Office can help.

• Learn more about driving under the influence (DUI) accident injury cases in Louisville:
• Hit by a Drunk Driver in Louisville, KY — What to Do
• Damages in a DUI Accident in Louisville, KY
• Can You File a Claim Against the Bar That Served the Drunk Driver?
• When Should I Call a Kentucky DUI Accident Injury Lawyer?

BAC Limits and DUI Laws in Kentucky

As is the case in most states, the general blood alcohol content limit for driving is 0.08%. However, there are stricter limits that apply to certain populations and specific laws that govern how these limits are tested. Here’s what you should know:

• Kentucky is a zero-tolerance state. Kentucky’s under-21 DUI laws are much stricter. This zero-tolerance state places a BAC limit of just 0.02% on underage drivers.
• Commercial drivers are also held to a stricter standard. Like underage drivers, commercial driver’s license (CDL) holders are also held to a stricter standard. Commercial drivers on duty have a BAC limit of 0.04%.
• The Bluegrass State has implied consent laws. Kentucky’s implied consent law makes it necessary for drivers to submit to breath or blood testing when pulled over for a potential DUI. You don’t need to consent to field sobriety tests, but a failure to consent to chemical testing can be used as evidence against you and could result in additional negative repercussions.

If you have any questions about Kentucky’s DUI laws and how they might apply to your DUI accident claim, reach out to our legal team for help.

A Drunk Driver Hit Me in Louisville — What Do I Do Now?

When you’ve been hurt in a drunk driving accident, you’re not alone. According to the NHTSA, DUI accidents claim the lives of about 34 people every day in the United States, which is one every 42 minutes. To make matters worse, these deaths were all preventable. 

If you are injured by a drunk driver in Louisville, remain calm at the scene and call 911 immediately. Obtaining medical attention for yourself as well as your passengers is of the utmost importance at this time. Furthermore, calling 911 will alert the authorities, who can investigate the accident, arrest the drunk driver if necessary, and file a police report. 

A police report and arrest for DUI will help you establish liability and make sure that you have the evidence needed to pursue a DUI accident injury claim. Even if you believe that you are not injured, do not leave the accident scene, as some serious injuries can take hours or even days for symptoms to appear. While you wait for the police and an ambulance, take photos of the other vehicle, its license plate number, and the surrounding area. 

Get any other information that can aid a future investigation, such as the contact information for eyewitnesses. When drunk drivers are involved in an accident, they often flee the scene. If you are physically able and if it is safe for you to do so, try to take a photo of the car before they flee. Focus on medical needs first, though!

Common Injuries in DUI Accident Injury Cases

The people most likely to suffer serious injuries during a drunk driving accident aren’t the intoxicated drivers themselves, but the sober people in other vehicles. Depending on factors such as how fast the cars were moving and what type of accident it was, you could experience injuries such as:

• Soft tissue injuries. Damage to the body’s connective tissues, including muscles, ligaments, and tendons, is common even in relatively minor accidents. Whiplash, in particular, is very common during collisions. It occurs when the neck is forced to move back and forth rapidly. Other areas of the back can also experience soft tissue injuries during drunk driving car accidents.
• Lacerations and contusions. Scrapes, cuts, and bruises are all common in any accident. Some of them can be quite serious. If you’ve experienced a severe contusion or laceration, it’s worth discussing your case with a car accident attorney. If it was caused by a defective airbag, you might also have a claim against the vehicle manufacturer or parts manufacturer.
• Head injuries. If you hit your head on any part of the vehicle, you could experience a traumatic brain injury (TBI) or a facial injury. TBIs range in severity from mild concussions to serious, life-altering injuries that cause permanent cognitive impacts.

The symptoms of TBIs don’t always appear right away, which is part of why it’s so important to seek medical attention after a car wreck, even if you’re not sure you were severely injured.

• Internal damage. Internal bleeding and organ damage are both serious, life-threatening problems that require immediate medical intervention. They are most likely in serious car accidents.
• Broken bones. The same forces that cause whiplash and TBIs can also leave accident victims with broken bones. Minor fractures can usually heal relatively quickly with minimal medical intervention. Crushed bones are more serious and can require extensive surgical intervention or even amputation.

Whether you’re suffering from broken bones or a life-altering condition like spinal cord damage that has led to full or partial paralysis, a DUI accident attorney can help you hold the liable party accountable and get the compensation you deserve.

Factors That Can Influence the Severity of Your Injuries

Some car accidents lead to minor injuries only, while others cause catastrophic harm. It isn’t just luck that determines who suffers grievous injuries and who walks away from an accident. Additional factors that can influence how severe your injuries wind up being include:

• Whether you were wearing a seatbelt
• Whether your car was hit from the rear, side, or front
• What kind of car you were driving, and whether it had advanced safety features
• Whether you were facing straight ahead in the seat or turned in a different direction
• How fast both of the vehicles involved were moving

If vehicle design flaws or mechanical failures contributed to your sustaining more severe injuries due to airbag or other safety feature malfunctions, you may have an additional claim to file against the responsible party. Your lawyer can help you determine whether that is the case.

The Importance of Seeking Immediate Medical Attention

Some people assume that because they don’t have any obvious broken bones or serious visible injuries, they shouldn’t bother going to the doctor after a car crash. Making that assumption can be a costly mistake. Some car accident injuries don’t show symptoms right away. Failing to seek medical attention immediately after the accident can worsen the impact of these injuries on your health.

Worse potential health outcomes are just the top reason you should seek medical care immediately. Your car accident claim can also benefit from the decision to head to a local hospital like Norton Hospital. If you seek medical attention immediately, it will be harder for insurance companies to argue that any injuries you suffered were the result of other events rather than the accident that caused them.

Damages in a DUI Accident in Louisville, KY

After a drunk driving accident, you may be entitled to recover damages like the following from the at-fault driver:

• Expenses associated with past and future medical care
• Physical therapy
• Current and future income losses (including employer contributions to your health insurance and retirement plans)
• Pain and suffering
• Damage to your property (such as car repair/replacement and any items of value in your vehicle destroyed in the accident)
• Permanent and/or total disability
• Wrongful death
• Punitive damages

In some cases, the court may impose punitive damages, which are intended to punish the wrongdoer instead of simply compensating the victim. For example, if you were seriously injured by someone with a long history of DUI arrests, you’re more likely to receive punitive damages. Punitive damages in Kentucky are not capped; courts and juries must determine the appropriate dollar amount that will deter future behavior.

Aggravated DUIs and Punitive Damages

If there were any aggravating factors present at the time of the defendant’s DUI arrest, that could work in your favor when it comes to seeking punitive damages. Aggravating factors in Kentucky include:

• Driving 30-plus miles over the speed limit
• Driving the wrong way on the highway
• Having minors under the age of 12 in the vehicle at the time of arrest
• Having a BAC of 0.15% or higher

These aggravating factors can also increase the drunk driver’s criminal penalties.

Factors That Influence Settlement Amounts

Drunk driving accident injury settlements vary significantly in value. The amount of your settlement will depend on factors such as:

• The severity of your injuries
• Your injuries’ impact on your quality of life
• How much medical treatment you need
• How much property damage you incurred
• The amount of lost wages and/or future earning potential
• Whether you have been permanently disabled or disfigured

Your settlement amount could also depend on how skilled your lawyer is at negotiating with insurance companies. 

Can You File a Claim Against the Bar That Served the Drunk Driver in Louisville?

It’s certainly possible, but it depends on the circumstances. Kentucky Revised Statutes section 413.241 states that alcohol vendors like North of Bourbon may be held liable if their bartender or wait staff should reasonably have known that the driver was already drunk when they served them. If such knowledge were not available, there is a liability limitation that could prohibit you from suing the bar unless the driver was under the legal drinking age. 

It should be noted that Kentucky law does not allow someone injured by an intoxicated party guest to file a claim against the party host in order to recover damages. Only vendors who are licensed to sell or serve alcohol are covered under the state’s dram shop liability law.

When Should I Hire a DUI Accident Injury Lawyer?

After your injuries have been treated, your next step should be to contact an experienced Louisville DUI accident attorney. There are a couple of reasons why it’s important to hire a DUI accident lawyer as soon as possible after the crash.

Your lawyer can review your case, collect and preserve necessary evidence, and help you avoid missing any important deadlines in your DUI accident case. 

You will soon be contacted by a claims adjuster. No matter how friendly and concerned they sound on the phone, do not speak to any insurance company without first consulting an attorney. By talking to an insurance adjuster yourself, you could unknowingly compromise your claim. 

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How Can The Schafer Law Office Help Me?

At The Schafer Law Office, we thoroughly understand the relevant DUI accident laws. Attorney Mike Schafer has even written books on the subject, so you are in experienced and knowledgeable hands. Once you’ve hired a DUI accident injury lawyer from our firm, we can begin building your case and establishing liability. 

To do this, your lawyer can review key evidence like medical records, police reports, and BAC test data and use them to build a case to help you obtain appropriate compensation for your injuries. We can also work with you to help you receive the proper medical treatment. Some injuries do not show symptoms right away. 

Sometimes it takes days, and even minor injuries can result in chronic pain over time. Your attorney can help you find the right medical care for your specific injuries and get you fairly compensated for them.

Speak to a Louisville DUI Accident Injury Lawyer Today

If you or a loved one has been injured by a drunk driver, don’t hesitate to contact the experienced Kentucky DUI accident injury attorneys at The Schafer Law Office. Attorney Mike Schafer and his team work tirelessly with victims of all kinds of DUI accidents, with the goal of getting them the compensation they need to work through their physical and emotional traumas and heal. For more information or to schedule a consultation, please contact us online.