Drunk driving accidents are one of the most dangerous – and avoidable – kinds of wrecks there are. While a sober driver may make a driving error but can react in time to avoid the crash, a driver who is under the influence lacks the reaction time and reflexes to course correct. Drunk drivers also make significant judgment errors, such as driving the wrong way on the highway, that sober drivers do not make. Victims of drunk driving accidents often suffer catastrophic personal injuries that many of them do not survive.
Types of Drunk Driving Crashes
Car accidents involving alcohol are often much more severe than those involving a sober driver. This is because the driver’s behavior is usually unpredictable, both before and after the accident. The most common types of alcohol-related crashes that our Virginia personal injury firm handles include:
- Head-on crashes – Drivers who are under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs are notorious for going the wrong way on streets and highways. Some of the more frequent actions that result in these types of accidents are that the drunk driver missed the one-way sign, drove up the off-ramp to the interstate, or drove over a median. The drunk driver is now going in the wrong direction, leaving other vehicle drivers going in the correct direction with nothing to protect them from being struck head-on.
- High-speed crashes – Drunk drivers often operate in a reckless manner, traveling at high speeds, taking turns too quickly, and running red lights. They often fail to stop in time, or they lose control of the vehicle, causing them to slam into other vehicles around them. Because of the speeds these vehicles are traveling, the damage and injuries are often devastating.
- Rear-end crashes – Many drunk drivers fail to stop in time to avoid hitting a vehicle in front of them that has slowed down or come to a stop. They also fail to drive according to road or weather conditions. Their delayed reflexes often cause them to fail to apply their brakes in time – if at all – and they end up hitting the vehicle in front of them with full force.
- T-bone crashes – Whether a drunk driver fails to see the red light or stop sign, or just feels that these traffic laws do not apply to them, the result is often the same; failure to stop or yield in time to another vehicle that has the right of way. These types of accidents usually take place at intersections.
Contact a Virginia Drunk Driving Accident Attorney
Unfortunately, no matter how many precautions you may take to stay safe, there are far too many other drivers on the road who fail to do the same. If you are injured in a drunk driving accident, contact a Virginia car accident attorney to find out what legal options you may have.
The legal team from Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp has been advocating for injured clients since 1985 and will do all we can to ensure you receive the best possible outcome under the circumstances of your case. If you would like to meet with one of our skilled Va. car accident attorneys to find out how we can help, call our office today to schedule a free case evaluation.
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