Alcohol impacts drivers’ ability to safely operate cars, which can cause collisions resulting in serious injuries or death.
Despite ever increasing awareness of the dangers, many people in Georgia, and throughout the U.S., get behind the wheel after drinking alcoholic beverages. According to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc., alcohol-related crashes cause close to 13,000 deaths and hundreds of thousands of injuries every year. Often, the effects that alcohol consumption has on the human body are contributing factors in these types of collisions.
How does alcohol affect the body?
Once in the system, alcohol has a range of effects on the human body. These effects may begin to manifest after as little as one beverage. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people with a blood alcohol content level of .02 percent may experience impaired judgment and relaxation. As more alcohol is consumed, people tend to have reduced levels of alertness, lowered inhibitions, loss of muscle control and coordination, and slower than normal reaction times. In high amounts, alcohol consumption may also cause people to vomit, black out or pass out.
How does alcohol affect drivers?
On their own, the effects of alcohol can be dangerous enough. For drivers, however, the risk they pose is even more significant. Some of the effects that alcohol consumption may have on drivers include the following:
- Decreased ability to track moving targets, such as other vehicles or pedestrians
- Reduced capacity to perform more than one task at a time
- Difficulty steering, controlling speed, maintaining lane position and braking
- Diminished ability to identify and respond to danger, including road hazards
- Impaired perception
People who get behind the wheel after drinking often believe that they have not had too much to drive safely. When stopped by investigating officers they are rarely truthful about how much they have had to drink, usually stating that they have only had “one or two.” Even after only one drink, the effects of alcohol can impact a driver’s ability to safely operate a motor vehicle. Due to this type of negligent behavior, drunk driving crashes may occur, causing others potentially life-changing injuries.
Seeking legal guidance
People in Georgia who suffer injuries in auto collisions require medical treatment, incur medical expenses, and might lose wages due to lost time at work or lost ability to work as hard. The drunk drivers who cause such crashes should be held liable for the resulting damages. Unfortunately, it has been our experience that insurance companies often mishandle and “low-ball” the victims of a drunken driver. Too often we see the insurance company offer our clients less than their medical bills in an effort to safe the insurer money while ignoring the consequences of their insured’s actions on our innocent client. As such, people who have suffered injuries in alcohol-related collisions may benefit from working with an attorney. A legal representative can help determine if alcohol was a contributing factor in the crash, as well as help you understand your options for obtaining financial compensation. At Neuberger Law, LLC we have helped numerous people obtain compensation for injuries caused by drunk drivers. If you need help too, please call us at (678) 766-1700.