Dram shop liability laws help reduce drunk driving. Those who serve alcohol may be held responsible for damages.

DUI is a crime and it has various penalties depending on which state you happen to live. Many states these days are starting to enact something referred to as dram shop liability laws to help reduce DUI. Texas is one of those states.

This particular concept has been around for a fair while. In fact, the first version of the legislation used now, The Texas Dram Shop Act, didn’t pass into law until 1987 as a result of El Chico Corporation v. Poole. That case recognized a common law duty on the part of dram shops, a.k.a. any place that sells alcohol for consumption, to their patrons. As an Austin personal injury attorney, I see a lot of plaintiff’s injury cases as a result of a DUI driver.

It’s interesting to note that the original purpose of the Dram Shop Act was the protection of “the welfare, health, peace, temperance and safety of the people of the state.” (Tex Alco Bev Code Ann§1.03) As it was then, so it is now. Unfortunately, the numbers of drunk drivers out there on the roads in Texas has gone up significantly. In part, the Dram Shop Act does make a difference though.
Not all states have the exact same law on their books, but by and large they do say the same thing. All that you really need to know is that there are several characteristics that help reduce drunk driving. To this end, some states only focus on illegal booze sales. An example of this would be knowingly selling alcohol to a minor who then drives while intoxicated and kills someone. In those states, that bar may be held liable for wrongful death compensation; all of it or part of it.

Other states want to stop social hosts and bartenders letting people drink and then get behind the wheel of a vehicle. Their laws state those who serve should also know how much someone has consumed. Thus, if someone leaves a place and is obviously 4-sheets to the wind, the place serving the booze may be held partially responsible for any damages caused by the drunk driver.

The underlying reason for most states to pass this type of a law is to hopefully encourage those who serve alcohol, and make a tidy profit at it, to take more responsibility in keeping drunks off the road. The last thing that most places that serve alcoholic beverages to their patrons want is to pay out millions in damages when it’s far cheaper and makes more common sense to call the patron a cab.

If you have been involved in an accident and the other driver was DUI, you may want to pursue compensation under dram shop liability laws. You’d need to speak to an Austin personal injury attorney to find out how these actions work and what the process is for filing a lawsuit.

Beverly Aylmer writes for The Lee Law Firm. If you need an Austin personal injury lawyer, contact an Austin personal injury attorney from The Lee Law Firm. Visit RWLeelaw.com.

If it isn’t one thing, it’s another when it comes to what causes auto accidents. Stay alert and be safe.

While you may be a good driver, it doesn’t mean that others on the road are or will be at any given time. Since you don’t have that much control over other drivers, your best recourse is to be aware of what the most common causes of accidents are so you can be on the lookout, avoid negligence when you see it, and avoid winding up in the office of an Austin personal injury attorney asking about compensation for an accident.

Let’s start with what is likely the most obvious number one cause of car crashes, driver behavior. You’d be right if you said that driver behavior is usually the primary cause (foundation) for the “other” causes we’re going to take a look at as well. But first, let’s discuss driver behavior, knowing that we have all likely done one of these very things ourselves at some point in time; for instance, driving while distracted (using a cell phone or texting), driving while dead tired, speeding, aggressive driving, and DUI/DWI. There are other behaviors that really should not happen behind the wheel of a vehicle, but unfortunately, they do.

While you might not think about this, if you slow down to look at an accident, you may be the next crash on display. It actually happens in about 16% of all accident cases where the driver was bemoaning another driver’s fate when they got hit. As far as cell phones go, a lot of jurisdictions will only allow hands-free cell use while driving in an effort to reduce distractions. Frankly, cells phones and cell phone conversations, handheld or hands-free are distractions, no matter what way you look at it.

Other causes may involve equipment failure such as faulty tires, shaky steering, bad brakes and a questionable suspension. Just because the more modern vehicles have onboard computers that do just about everything, the tires, etc. still need regular inspections and maintenance. While that accounts for the car itself, the other external factor is roadway design.

Theory has it that roads are supposedly laid out to reduce the chance of accidents happening. Street signs and signals are placed at certain locations for the same reason. Unfortunately, not all road designs are that safe, and the location of some signs and signals are less than brilliant. As an Austin personal injury attorney, I’ve seen a lot of nasty accidents that happened because of poor roadway design.

Aside from a somewhat less than ideal roadway design, there is poor maintenance of the roadway as well that tends to cause accidents. Ever seen a stretch of road that has more potholes in it than your dog could dig in the backyard in a year? For some unknown reason (likely budget concerns) maintaining a road seems to come dead last for many jurisdictions.

And last, but not least, weather conditions will play a large part in some accidents, particularly in the winter. If drivers don’t adjust to the road conditions, they can likely expect to find a place to have their accident. And it’s not just men drivers that have poor driving behavior. Men and women, no matter what age, share the trophy for really bad driving habits.
Take care out there, because if you don’t, no one else will do it for you.

Beverly Aylmer writes for The Lee Law Firm. If you need an Austin personal injury lawyer, contact an Austin personal injury attorney from The Lee Law Firm. Visit RWLeelaw.com.