A crash with an impaired driver can leave you dealing with serious injuries, medical bills, lost income, and lasting disruption to your life. An Indianapolis drunk driving accident lawyer at Vaughan & Vaughan can pursue the compensation you need while you focus on treatment and recovery.
Many people assume they have to wait for the criminal case against the drunk driver to play out before taking action on an injury claim. That is not the case.
Your civil claim for compensation is separate from the driver’s criminal charges, and waiting too long can make it harder to preserve evidence and protect the value of your case.
Vaughan & Vaughan moves quickly to investigate the crash, document your losses, and build a claim that reflects the full impact of the collision. Call Vaughan & Vaughan today at (765) 742-0056 or contact us online for a free consultation.
Why Choose Vaughan & Vaughan for Your Drunk Driving Accident Claim
When a drunk driver seriously injures you or someone you love, the law firm you choose matters. Vaughan & Vaughan is a fourth-generation Indiana trial law firm that takes on a limited number of serious cases, allowing our attorneys to devote the time, attention, and resources each case deserves.
Indiana Trial Advocacy Since 1913
For over a century, our family has served injured Hoosiers. Our firm is led by a Board Certified Trial Lawyer and a Professor of Trial Advocacy who teaches other attorneys how to prepare and try complex cases.
Powerful and Unwavering Support
The attorneys at Vaughan & Vaughan build every case around personal attention and a commitment to standing up for people who feel outmatched by powerful insurance companies. We stay closely involved in your case, communicate directly with you, and put in the work needed to challenge insurance companies that try to minimize the value of your claim.
Unmatched Client Service
You’ll be assigned one Indianapolis drunk driving accident attorney and support team from the beginning, and you’ll never be passed off to a stranger. We provide same-day returns on calls and texts and are always available for in-person appointments to give you clarity and peace of mind.
Whether you were injured near The Fashion Mall at Keystone, leaving a game at Lucas Oil, or driving home from work in Carmel, our team is ready to act. Call us at (765) 742-0056 or fill out our online form to get started.
Your Case Will Get
The Attention It Deserves
Your Civil Case vs the Driver’s Criminal Charges
A drunk driving crash can lead to both a criminal case and a civil claim, but only the civil claim is meant to recover money for your losses. If you wait for the criminal case to finish before acting on the civil side, important evidence can disappear, and the insurance company gains time to protect its own interests.
The State of Indiana handles the criminal case against the drunk driver. That case focuses on punishment, which may include fines, jail time, or a license suspension.
Even if the driver is convicted, the criminal case does little to cover your medical bills, lost income, or other losses. Any restitution ordered in that case may be limited and difficult to collect.
Your civil claim is separate. We pursue it against the driver and the available insurance coverage to recover compensation for the harm the crash caused. That work doesn’t depend on the outcome of the criminal case, and in many cases, it should begin much sooner.
We move quickly to protect the civil case by:
- Preserving Evidence: Your Indianapolis drunk driving accident lawyer can send immediate preservation notices to secure footage, records, and other evidence before it’s lost or destroyed.
- Interviewing Witnesses: We speak with witnesses early, while their memories are still fresh and before they become harder to locate.
- Documenting the Scene: Our in-house investigator, a former police lieutenant, can return to the scene to document conditions and details that the initial police report may not capture.
- Handling Insurance Communication: We take over contact with adjusters so they cannot use your statements to reduce the value of your claim.
Whether the crash happened on a city street in Indianapolis, such as Meridian Street or Washington Street, or on a major roadway like I-65, we start building the civil case right away.
There is no fee
unless you win
What Does It Take To Hold a Drunk Driver Fully Accountable in Indianapolis?
An Operating While Intoxicated (OWI) charge can strongly support a civil injury claim, but it doesn’t do all the work for us. We still have to prove that the driver’s impairment caused the crash and connect the crash to your injuries.
That is why your Indianapolis drunk driving accident lawyer looks beyond the arrest itself. Our team investigates the full sequence of events and builds the liability case around everything that points to impaired, careless, or dangerous driving.
If the evidence shows the driver was also speeding, ignored a traffic signal, drifted across lanes, or drove while distracted, we use those facts to strengthen the claim and cut off defense arguments early.
We also look at whether someone other than the drunk driver may share responsibility. In some cases, that may include a bar or restaurant that served alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person.
These claims require fast, focused investigation because receipts, surveillance footage, and witness accounts don’t stay available forever.
To build your case, we focus on:
- Police Findings: Your lawyer reviews the crash report, officer observations, field sobriety testing, and chemical test results.
- Criminal Evidence: We track the criminal case for testimony, filings, and other evidence that may strengthen the civil claim.
- Video Footage: Our team works to secure footage from traffic cameras, businesses, and dashcams before it disappears.
- Electronic Data: When vehicle data, such as the black box, is available, we use it to help show speed, braking, steering, and other driver inputs before impact.
How Much Compensation Can You Recover After a Drunk Driving Crash in Indianapolis?
A strong claim should reflect the full impact the crash has had on your life, not just the bills in front of you today. Vaughan & Vaughan builds every case to account for both your current losses and the costs you may face in the future, and pushes back against settlement offers that fall short.
Your claim may include compensation for:
- Medical Bills: Your claim can pursue compensation for emergency care, hospital treatment, follow-up visits, physical therapy, surgeries, medications, and any future care you may need.
- Lost Income: We seek compensation for the wages you have already lost and any future earning ability affected by your injuries.
- Pain and Suffering: Your personal injury claim can include the physical pain, emotional distress, and disruption the crash has caused in your daily life.
- Property Damage: We pursue the cost to repair or replace your vehicle and any other personal property damaged in the collision.
Our team supports these claims with detailed documentation, medical analysis, and a clear explanation of how the crash has affected your health, finances, and day-to-day life.
Our on-staff nurse helps us understand your treatment and project future care needs, ensuring your claim reflects the full picture of your new reality and you don’t end up paying out of pocket.
Punitive Damages in Indianapolis Drunk Driving Cases
Drunk driving cases may also involve punitive damages under Indiana law. These damages are not tied to a specific financial loss. Instead, they’re meant to punish the driver for reckless conduct and discourage similar behavior in the future.
While not available in every case, punitive damages can become an important part of holding a drunk driver fully accountable.
How an Indianapolis Drunk Driving Accident Attorney Defends Your Rights
Even when a drunk driver causes the crash, we don’t expect the insurance company to offer fair compensation without a fight. Adjusters look for ways to reduce claim value, create delay, and pressure injured people into mistakes before the full impact of the crash is clear.
Common tactics include:
- Delay: Insurers may drag out your personal injury claim and use the time against you, hoping you’ll miss your deadline.
- Recorded Statements: Adjusters may push for a statement they can later use to challenge fault, injuries, or both.
- Low Settlement Offers: An early offer may sound helpful, but it likely will fall far short of what your claim is actually worth.
- Treatment Disputes: The insurer may argue that your care was unnecessary or blame your condition on a pre-existing issue.
- Coverage Games: Adjusters may downplay or muddy the available insurance coverage to make a low offer seem more reasonable.
- Fault Shifting: The insurer may try to assign you part of the blame to reduce its payout.
Let an Indianapolis drunk driving accident lawyer from Vaughan & Vaughan take over communication, protect the evidence, and keep the insurance company from controlling the story.
We’ll build your claim carefully, value it based on the full harm you suffered, and push back against tactics designed to wear you down.
FAQ for Indianapolis Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer
What Should I Do After an Accident With a Drunk Driver in Indianapolis?
Seek medical attention as soon as possible after an accident with a drunk driver. Prompt treatment protects your health and creates records that may become important in your claim later. Be cautious about speaking with the other driver’s insurance company before you understand how your injuries and the evidence may affect the claim.
Seeking early legal help can also make a difference in protecting evidence and preventing the insurance company from gaining an advantage.
Do I Still Have a Case if the Drunk Driver Was Found Not Guilty in Criminal Court?
You can still secure compensation for your losses even if the impaired driver wasn’t convicted. The criminal and civil justice systems have different standards of proof. A prosecutor must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt in a criminal case, which is a very high bar.
To win a civil case, we only need to prove liability by a preponderance of the evidence, meaning it was more likely than not that the driver’s negligence caused your injuries. A not-guilty verdict in the criminal case has no legal bearing on your right to pursue a civil claim for damages.
Is It a Mistake To Give a Recorded Statement to the Insurance Company?
Don’t give the insurer a recorded statement without first discussing your claim with an attorney. Insurance adjusters are trained to ask questions that can be used against you. They may phrase questions in a confusing way or get you to downplay your injuries or unintentionally admit partial fault.
Once your statement is recorded, it becomes evidence that can be used to limit or deny your claim.
How Can an Indianapolis Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Help Me?
An Indianapolis drunk driving accident lawyer manages every aspect of your civil claim so you can focus on healing. This includes conducting a private investigation, gathering evidence, identifying all liable parties, calculating your damages, and negotiating with the insurance companies.
If the insurance company refuses to make a fair offer, your attorney can file a lawsuit and prepare your case for trial to fight for the compensation you need.
How Can I Afford To Hire a Lawyer When I’m Already Missing Work?
Vaughan & Vaughan handles all drunk driving accident cases on a contingency fee agreement, so there are no upfront costs to get started. If we don’t win your case, you owe us zero fees for our services.
We cover all the expenses of building and pursuing your case, and we only receive a fee if we successfully recover money for you through a settlement or verdict.
Let’s Get To Work on Your Compensation
The choice to drive drunk is a reckless act with serious consequences. You shouldn’t have to bear the financial and personal burden of that choice alone. Vaughan & Vaughan has the experience, resources, and dedication to hold the responsible parties accountable and secure the resources you need to move forward.
Let us put our family’s century of experience to work for you. For a free and confidential case review, call our team today at (765) 742-0056 or complete our online contact form.
