Many risky situations can happen when you are a participant in traffic. If someone drives when drunk, that significantly increases the possibility of an accident. Alcohol causes the intoxication of the organism and disrupts normal functioning.
Car crashes caused by driving while intoxicated (DWI) carry certain sanctions, depending on whether there are human victims and what is the material damage. If there is a minor accident, and you are injured, you need to look for a good lawyer who will guide you through the process.
An explanation of why DWI is not always the same as driving under the influence find on this source: https://www.verywellmind.com/dui-vs-dwi-what-is-the-difference-67214.
Settle or Go to Court
You have all the rights to ask for punishment for the culprit if you are a victim of an accident caused by a drunk driver. You can always submit a lawsuit, or you can also try to settle outside the court (in case of minor material damage or when your life is not endangered).
If you visit any legal website, you’ll read that the out-of-court settlement is, in fact, the contract of two parties (persons, companies, etc.) between whom there is a dispute or some unresolved legal issue. If you decide to start the trial, you can settle any time during the process. But in most cases, it’s a step before going to court.
Is Settlement the Best Solution?
Drunk drivers cause accidents in a state of disturbed consciousness. They are often not even aware of what happened. If you want to charge for the damage, try to ask for compensation out of the courtroom. But the court will decide on further criminal charges, as the drunk driving is a serious violation.
The most reliable way to determine whether an out-of-court settlement is the best solution for you is the agreement with your legal team. An experienced lawyer will do an estimation of all expenses, and assess whether it’s worth of going to court or not.
Most DWI attorneys will charge you per hour. And the trials can last up to several months. It can happen that you’ll pay more for your lawyer than you’ll get compensation. If the damage made in the drunk driving accident is only material, avoiding numerous trials will save your time, money, and energy.
Don’t Accept Out-of-Court Settlement at All Costs
An out-of-court settlement is not desirable in every situation. Although this is the easiest way to solve some claims, it is not always the most effective. When negotiating without the presence of relevant institutions, the two parties may agree on the compensation, but not about the penalty. You can’t punish the culprit – the court is in charge of this.
Look for a good lawyer if you try to settle with an insurance company of the drunk driver. If your DWI lawyer didn’t do a good estimation of this amount, you may get lower compensation than the court could decide. People often accept the settlement to their own damage because of ignorance.
Civil Suit Is Not Criminal Proceeding
The decision to sue a drunk driver depends only on you. However, this doesn’t mean that the culprit won’t be punished. The civil suit is a legal process separated from the criminal proceeding. You can’t influence the decision of the legal institutions. Even if you didn’t want to punish the culprit, the court would do that anyway. It’s a matter of public safety.
To understand the effects of alcohol consumption and risks of drunk driving, check the following page: https://www.psycom.net/drinking-and-driving.
The legal system is not ‘kind’ to people driving under the influence of alcohol. The court decides to prosecute a culprit for the accident in order to protect the public from future accidents. A drunk driver can be charged even when he didn’t cause damage or human victims. It’s enough that the police find him drunk behind the wheel.
Numerous campaigns carried all around the world that should raise awareness about the harmful effects of alcohol on the human psyche and motor skills – all in order to reduce the number of accidents. The results are visible, but unfortunately, there are still persistent people who won’t give up booze before sitting behind the wheel.
