St. Louis DUI Accident Lawyer
The Midwest's Most Effective Injury Law Firm
This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by a team of legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by Founding Partner, Terry Crouppen who has more than 40 years of legal experience as a personal injury attorney. Our last modified date shows when this page was last reviewed.
This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by a team of legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by Founding Partner, Terry Crouppen who has more than 40 years of legal experience as a personal injury attorney. Our last modified date shows when this page was last reviewed.
- Last Modified:
- November 19, 2024
If you or a loved one has been injured by an impaired or drunk driver, our DUI accident lawyers may be able to help you recover compensation. Our accident and injury attorneys work on a contingency fee basis, meaning there are no upfront costs or legal fees – we only get paid if you win.
Find out how our extensive experience and depth of resources can help you set up the financial victory you deserve. Call our law office in St. Louis, Missouri, at (314) 501-9510 or request a free case evaluation online.
- How Common Are Drunk Driving Car Accidents in St. Louis?
- Get Help from a St. Louis Car Accident Attorney at Brown & Crouppen
- Why Are Drunk Driving Accidents So Dangerous?
- Is Anyone Other Than the Drunk Driver Liable for My Accident and Injuries?
- Does Car Insurance Cover Drunk Driving Car Accidents?
- What Damages Are Available to Drunk Driving Accident Victims in St. Louis?
- Common DWI/DUI Accident Injuries
- How Long Do I Have to File a Lawsuit After a Drunk Driving Accident in Missouri?
- What Do I Have to Prove to Win a DWI Injury Case in Missouri?
- Trusted St. Louis DWI Accident Lawyers Ready to Fight for You
If you or a loved one were hit by an impaired or drunk driver in St. Louis or surrounding areas, you may be eligible to recover damages for medical expenses, lost wages, and non-economic damages such as pain and suffering after an auto accident.
Since 1979, our law firm has helped accident and injury victims recover compensation, totaling over $1 billion as a result of settlements and verdicts. Our personal injury lawyers can help you determine if you’re eligible to recover financial compensation, and help you build a strong claim following an auto accident caused by a drunk driver.
Use our legal checklist to learn what to do after an accident and understand key legal considerations for recovering financial compensation.
How Common Are Drunk Driving Accidents in St. Louis?
According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, 6,589 car accidents involving drunk or impaired drivers were reported statewide in 2021.
No fewer than 86 of these DUI accidents occurred in the city of St. Louis. Another 786 took place in St. Louis County.
The St. Louis metro area saw roughly 13 percent of the state’s drunk driving accidents that year.
Many of these St. Louis DUI car accidents were serious, with 32 reported deaths and another 303 injuries.
Get Help from a St. Louis Car Accident Attorney at Brown & Crouppen
The drunk driver who caused your car accident might lose their license and face criminal DUI charges. However, that won’t help to restore your life to what it was before the accident. Fortunately, you have the opportunity to file a personal injury claim and fight to hold the drunk driver (and other parties) personally accountable for the harm they’ve caused.
But what do you have to prove to win a drunk driving injury case? What evidence will you need to back up your allegations? What happens if the drunk driver attempts to point fingers and blame you for the crash? How much money is your drunk driving injury case worth, anyway? What if the drunk driver worked for a ride-share company such as Uber?
These are all important car accident questions — and not ones that you should have to answer on your own. Fortunately, you don’t have to. Call Brown & Crouppen and let our St. Louis car accident lawyers stand up and fight for you.
We understand that this is your one opportunity to recover compensation for injuries and trauma that have changed your life forever. We’re ready to invest whatever resources, time, and experience are necessary to get you the best possible results.
You can take time to focus on your recovery while our DUI injury attorneys in St. Louis:
- Launch an independent investigation into your drunk driving car accident
- Gather evidence that can be used to build a strong claim for damages, including medical records, police reports, results of field sobriety tests, 911 recordings, witness statements, and physical evidence from the scene
- Consult with respected accident experts and injury specialists
- Handle complications that may arise if the driver is formally charged with DWI/DUI
- Determine who, other than the impaired driver, might be legally responsible for your injuries
- Aggressively negotiate with other parties in an effort to secure the best possible settlement deal for you
- Bring your case to a jury in St. Louis if you don’t receive a reasonable settlement offer
We know money can be tight right after a car accident, which is why our St. Louis personal injury lawyers work on a contingency fee basis. You don’t pay anything unless we win your DWI injury case.
Get started with a free consultation with one of our skilled Personal Injury Lawyers today.
Why Are Drunk Driving Accidents So Dangerous?
Alcohol is a depressant, which slows down the body’s ability to function and respond to external stimuli.
Drivers under the influence are likely to experience:
- Impaired judgment
- Blurred or impaired vision
- Loss of muscle control
- Reduced coordination
- Difficulty steering
- Reduced alertness
- Slowed reaction times
- Memory loss
- Difficulty concentrating
- Loss of impulse control
- Slowed thinking and cognitive reasoning
So, when a driver drinks before they get behind the wheel, they become less capable of driving safely.
Drunk drivers are more likely to:
- Run red lights and stop signs
- Speed
- Leave their designated lane of traffic
- Drive while distracted
- Tailgate other vehicles
- Fail to yield the right of way while merging or moving through an intersection
- Look for bicyclists, pedestrians, or other vehicles
- Drive the wrong way
- Ignore or miss traffic signs
It just takes one simple mistake to cause an accident. If you’ve been hurt in an accident because a drunk driver was at the wheel of another vehicle, contact Brown & Crouppen to discuss your legal options and how we can help you maximize your financial recovery.
Is Anyone Other Than the Drunk Driver Liable for My Accident and Injuries?
Possibly. Under Missouri law, anyone who contributes to an auto accident can be financially responsible for the consequences. It’s certainly possible that a third party contributed to your drunk driving accident in some way.
Depending on the specific details of your crash, the following parties could potentially be responsible for your DUI injuries:
- Other negligent motorists
- Bicyclists or pedestrians
- Property owners
- A business that over served the drunk driver
- A social host if the drunk driver was underage
- Vehicle manufacturers
- Employers
Our attorneys will carefully analyze your drunk driving traffic accident to determine why it happened and identify all potentially liable parties.
Does Car Insurance Cover Drunk Driving Car Accidents?
Missouri is an at-fault state, which means that the at-fault party’s insurance company will be primarily responsible for injuries after a car accident. So if the drunk driver has insurance (as required by law), you can submit a claim to their carrier and seek damages up to their policy limit.
What happens if the drunk driver is uninsured or doesn’t have enough insurance to cover the costs of your drunk driving accident injuries?
In that situation, you can:
- Submit a claim to recover benefits through your Uninsured Motorist Coverage (UM) or Underinsured Motorist Coverage (UIM)
- File a claim with another liable party’s insurance policy
- File a personal injury lawsuit against the drunk driver or another at-fault party
At Brown & Crouppen, our DWI injury attorneys will aggressively pursue compensation from all available sources. This will help to ensure that you receive all the money you need and deserve after your devastating drunk driving crash.
What Damages Are Available to Drunk Driving Accident Victims in St. Louis?
After a drunk driving car accident in St. Louis, you can pursue economic and non-economic damages through an insurance claim or lawsuit. The average settlement for an individual hit by a drunk driver generally ranges from $50,000 to $150,000, but may be higher or lower depending on various case factors.
Economic damages make up for the financial expenses associated with a drunk driving accident, while non-economic damages compensate for pain and suffering and other losses that are not easily quantified.
Brown & Crouppen will help you seek compensation for:
- Present and future medical bills
- Lost wages and income
- Disability
- Reduced earning capacity
- Property damage
- Nursing assistance
- Pain and suffering / Emotional distress
- Loss of consortium
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Disfigurement
- Reduced quality of life
Punitive damages are sometimes awarded in drunk driving accident cases in Missouri, particularly in situations where a driver’s BAC is much higher than the legal limit of .08 percent. However, there must be evidence that the driver (or another party) acted intentionally or displayed a conscious disregard for your safety.
At Brown & Crouppen, we’ll carefully evaluate your case and work closely with experts as we identify your damages and determine what your DWI/DUI accident case is worth.
Common DWI/DUI Accident Injuries
Intoxicated drivers can cause devastating accidents in which victims suffer:
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Spinal cord injuries
- Burn injuries
- Nerve damage
- Amputation
- Neck and back injuries
- Chest injuries
- Crushing injuries
- Internal organ damage
- Vision or hearing loss
- Broken bones and fractures
- Other catastrophic injuries
- Wrongful death
Always seek medical treatment at the closest hospital in St. Louis if you’ve been hit by a drunk driver. Prompt care will help to document your trauma and ensure that you don’t experience unforeseen complications.
How Long Do I Have to File a Lawsuit After a Drunk Driving Accident in Missouri?
In Missouri, the statute of limitations for car accident lawsuits is five years. This typically gives you five years from the date of your drunk driving accident in St. Louis to file a claim for damages.
Families have three years to initiate a wrongful death lawsuit after a fatal accident.
Keep in mind that the statute of limitations in your civil DUI injury case may be tolled if the drunk driver is charged with a crime. Your case will be put on hold until the criminal drunk driving charges against the driver are resolved. However, you must still have filed your claim on time to preserve your right to seek damages.
If you miss the deadline that applies to your drunk driving injury case, you’ll give up the right to recover much-needed money for your injuries and suffering. Talk to a St. Louis car accident lawyer at Brown & Crouppen right away to avoid missing your opportunity for compensation.
What Do I Have to Prove to Win a DUI Injury Case in Missouri?
Negligence is the foundation for most drunk driving injury lawsuits in Missouri.
As the plaintiff seeking damages, you have the burden of proving that the drunk driver (or another liable party) acted unreasonably under the circumstances and caused you to get hurt.
Specifically:
- The drunk driver owed you a duty of care.
- The driver breached this duty by operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
- The driver’s intoxication caused an accident that was the cause of your injuries.
- You’ve suffered damages.
In Missouri, the laws prohibiting drunk driving are designated as “Driving While Intoxicated (DWI).” Synonymous with “Driving Under the Influence (DUI),” these laws apply to a driver operating a motor vehicle while impaired or with a blood alcohol concentration exceeding 0.08 percent. If the driver in your case is charged with DWI, you can use this to evoke the legal theory of negligence per se.
Negligence per se means that the driver broke a law that was intended to prevent the type of accident and injuries that occurred. If you can show this, it makes your path to a successful financial recovery much easier. You won’t have to prove that they were drunk (and therefore breached a duty of care owed to you). Instead, you just point to the fact that they violated Missouri’s drunk driving law.
"If you're in an accident and you have reason to believe that the person who hit you was driving under the influence, please make sure to share those concerns with the police officer because they can pursue that. They can smell breath. They can request breathalyzers. In some situations they may have been able to request blood samples. When you are hit by somebody who is under the influence, It automatically will make your case more valuable. When juries see that kind of behavior, they rightfully want to punish it because the people that are out there driving under the influence are making things dangerous for every one of us - and that includes people on the jury. So if the person who hits you was under the influence We know how to frame that claim just right to increase the value tremendously."
Trusted St. Louis DWI/DUI Accident Lawyers Ready to Fight for You
Someone decided to get behind the wheel while they were drunk, and now you’re left with painful and debilitating injuries. Don’t let them off the hook. Call Brown & Crouppen and have our experienced St. Louis DUI accident lawyers pursue maximum compensation from the drunk driver and other liable parties on your behalf. Call our law office in St. Louis today to schedule a free, no-obligation case evaluation with a member of our experienced team.
For over four decades, our car accident attorneys have been passionate advocates for clients in St. Louis and across the state of Missouri including Brentwood, Central West End, Clayton, Downtown St. Louis, Ferguson, Forest Park Southeast, Frontenac, Grand Center, Kirkwood, Ladue, Lafayette Square, Midtown, Olivette, Pagedale, Richmond Heights, Shaw, Soulard, The Hill, Tower Grove, University City, and Webster Groves. We understand that this is your one shot at getting the money you need and deserve, so we’ll be ready to do everything in our power to get you the best possible outcome.
FREE CASE EVALUATION
OUR OFFICE
Brown & Crouppen Law Firm
Address: 4900 Daggett Ave., St. Louis, MO 63110
Phone: (314) 501-9510
Our Results
SCHEDULE A FREE CONSULTATION
