Drunk Driving Accident Attorney in Virginia Beach

If you or someone you love has been injured by a drunk driver, you need someone who cares. In every drunk driving accident case, we work tirelessly to hold drunk drivers accountable for the injuries and suffering they’ve caused. Based in Virginia Beach, Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert & Woodward, P.C. has handled drunk driving injury cases in the Tidewater community for over 30 years. Our car accident attorneys are ready to fight to protect your legal rights.

We’ve seen the terrible effects of drunk driving. Someone else’s bad decision can lead to a lifetime of pain and suffering for an innocent victim and their family. It’s our goal to make sure that drunk driving victims get what they need: compassion, service, and compensation for their injuries.

Experienced Virginia Beach DUI Accident Attorneys

Our attorneys have experience trying these cases. For example, attorney Robert Haddad handled a case that advanced the ability of people injured by drunk drivers to make a claim for common-law punitive damages in Huffman v. Love, 245 Va. 311, decided by the Virginia Supreme Court in 1993. Our attorneys used that same case in support of his arguments for a teacher injured by a drunk driver, which led to the Fifth Largest jury verdict in Virginia in 2015 of $3.5 Million. And recently, in August of 2018, our firm obtained a $442,000 jury verdict in the City of Virginia Beach for a man injured by a drunk driver. 

We try these cases and hold drunk drivers responsible. We have the knowledge and experience to put on the right evidence, from police officers to toxicology experts, to make sure the jury understands the real harms and losses suffered by a victim of a drunk driver.

Contact Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert & Woodward, P.C. today by phone or online so that we can help you in your time of need. The consultation is free and comes with no obligations.

How Our Lawyers Help Drunk Driving Accident Victims

A drunk driving accident can be a nightmare. Another individual’s reckless and selfish decision to get behind the wheel while intoxicated can cause terrible injuries and leave victims suffering for the rest of their lives. The lawyers at Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert & Woodward, P.C. know how to fight for you in negotiations and court and pursue the justice and compensation you need.

• Our lawyers will protect you, not the insurance company’s bottom line. When you’re injured in a drunk driving accident, insurance companies aren’t looking out for your best interests. They’re looking out for their own bottom line. If an insurance company wants to settle quickly, it may be for far less than you deserve. If you’ve been injured by a drunk driver, our lawyers will listen to you and fight for your claim and while you heal. Our objectives are the same as yours.
• Our lawyers know how to build a claim and fight for you. In a drunk driving accident claim, a victim may need to show when, where, and how the accident occurred, prove the intoxication of the drunk driver, and they’ll need to prove injuries. Camera footage, medical records, sobriety tests, police reports, expert testimony, court records, and insurance policies may all come into play. We understand how to take all the evidence and build a convincing case for compensation.
• Our lawyers will fight the insurance companies to get the information your claim needs. We will work with you, the authorities, and the other side to get the evidence you need to prove your case.
• Our lawyers have handled many drunk driving negotiations and trials. During negotiations, the insurance company may try to lowball you. We know how to evaluate your claim, and we’ll let you know if the other side’s offer is fair. If the claim goes to court, we’ll fight for you there. Our lawyers have tried and obtained verdicts in drunk driving cases.
• Our lawyers will handle the work so you can focus on recovery. A drunk driving claim may generate more paperwork than you may expect: police reports, medical records, medical bills, records of lost wages, insurance policies, and on and on. Obtaining and organizing all of these documents can be a tremendous amount of work. Building a case and negotiating with other attorneys can be tedious. Our lawyers will make sure that your claim, and all the documents it needs, will be handled correctly and that deadlines will be met. Your job is to heal and put your life back together.

Compensation in a Personal Injury Claim

If you’ve been injured by a drunk driver, it’s important to understand what types of compensation may be available. Our lawyers are ready to review your situation and help you calculate how you may be able to recover.

In Virginia, you cannot sue a bar or server who contributed to the driver becoming intoxicated. Recovery and damages will have to come from the drunk driver who caused the injury – or, more likely, the insurance company that covered the drunk driver.

The following is a list of some of the things you may be able to receive compensation for:

• Medical Bills: Medical treatment is expensive, and the bills can stretch far into the future. Emergency treatment and reconstructive surgery are common. Disfigurement, disability, and other serious injuries can require treatment and rehabilitation for the rest of a person’s life.
• Lost Wages: It’s hard to work when you’re recovering from injuries caused by a drunk driver. Perhaps the injury made you miss time from work, or perhaps work is now impossible. If so, you may be entitled to compensation for your lost income – both in the past and in the future. If your injuries have limited your earning potential, you may be able to recover compensation for that as well.
• Property Damage: Automobiles, clothing, jewelry, and other personal property may be damaged or destroyed in a drunk driving accident. You may be entitled to compensation for the cost of repair or replacement.
• Pain and Suffering: Personal injury victims can suffer from long-term physical pain due to their injuries. This pain and suffering can damage their quality of life. Pain and suffering may also be psychological. The stress of injury can have severe and long-lasting emotional consequences. Disfigurement can cause low self-esteem and hinder victims for the rest of their life. Anxiety, depression, fear, and many other problems can arise.
• Punitive Damages: In Virginia, punitive damages may be available in drunk driving cases where a victim was harmed by a drunk driver. These damages are intended to punish the defendant and to send a message to others. Virginia Code § 8.01-44.5 details when punitive damages may be recovered in a drunk driving case. In short, there may be damages when the drunk driver’s blood alcohol was above a certain threshold of .15 BAC by weight by volume, the driver knew or should have known their abilities were impaired, and their intoxication was the proximate cause of injury or death. When punitive damages are involved, you need to understand the law and how to prove its elements. Our lawyers can help.

Learn more about the car accident claims process here!

Contact Us for Legal Help After a Drunk Driving Accident

A drunk driving accident can cost a victim everything. If you’ve been injured, you should focus your energy on healing — not on dealing with a drunk driving claim. Concentrate on your recovery. Our car accident attorneys can handle your claim.

The Virginia Beach law firm of Ruloff, Swain, Haddad, Morecock, Talbert & Woodward, P.C. has represented drunk driving victims for over 30 years. We know the pain and suffering that drunk drivers can cause. In every drunk driving case, we work to hold reckless drivers accountable for the injuries and suffering they’ve caused.

If you’ve been injured in a drunk driving accident in Tidewater Virginia or surrounding areas, contact us today by phone or online for a free review of your situation and advice about your legal options. We represent clients in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Newport News, Hampton, Chesapeake, and throughout the region.