Accidents happen; that is a fact. Accidents can be very difficult to recover from, and may take years to heal emotionally as well as physically, especially if one involves the death of a loved one or life-altering injuries. Any car accident is traumatic, but there is a difference in the emotional impact and required time to heal for the victim of a drunk driving accident in Pinellas.
Drinking and driving has caused many people to die, suffer pain, grieve the loss of a loved one, and/or go through life wondering that never ending question, “what if?” In the United States, more than 10,000 people were killed in drunk driving accidents last year alone. In Florida, there were more than 700 drunk driving fatalities in 2011.
Drunk Driving Victims Should Talk To a Personal Injury Lawyer
No matter what the damages turn out to be, if you are the victim of a drunk driving accident, you should seek professional help in the form of a personal injury lawyer in the Saint Petersburg area who handles drunk driving cases. Damages can be sought for a number of reasons.
When you call a potential lawyer for a drunk driving case in St. Petersburg, there are some specific answers you will want to look for. Keep in mind that not all personal injury attorneys are the same, or going to do things in exactly the same way. This is a guideline for finding a lawyer who will help you in your special circumstances:
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- Free consultation. Many lawyers offer this as a service to help you find out if you even have a case, before you begin paying someone to help you. This consultation will include going over the details of the accident, and any insurance coverage you and the other party involved may have to help with injuries and/or damages. Know the facts about your insurance: how much coverage you have, whether your insurance company is disputing your claim or not, and possibly even how much your rates will go up based on having an accident.
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- Look at the lawyer’s track record. You want to be able to see proof in his success rate and reputation as winning a good percentage of cases similar to yours. If there are not many such cases, you may want to look elsewhere for a different lawyer.
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- Ask for references. Make sure you check out any references you collect. Word of mouth from people who have had similar cases will tell you a lot about how the attorney works, whether he is accessible to his clients when needed, how long the process should be, and the real results of past cases from real people, rather than only numbers on a page.
Being the victim in a drunk driving accident may be the worst thing you ever go through. If you hire a good personal injury lawyer in Pinellas to help you figure things out and take your case to court for retribution and/or compensation, you will be on your way to closure and healing.
Emotionally, physically, and financially, you will be better off in the long run. Don’t just let it go and assume you will get nowhere. Call a personal injury lawyer for a consultation to determine whether you have a viable case. You won’t regret it.