If you’ve been hurt in a car accident in Wilmington caused by an overly fatigued driver, you deserve to seek accountability and compensation for your injuries and losses. The lawyers at Poisson, Poisson & Bower, PLLC, are ready to discuss your legal options for pursuing financial relief and justice.
Our attorneys have dedicated their careers to standing up for the rights of individuals harmed by other drivers’ negligence. We have over 40 years of experience and a proven record of successfully obtaining financial relief for clients injured in car accidents.
Call us or reach out online for a free case review with a drowsy driving car accident lawyer in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Why You Need Our Lawyers After a Crash Due to Driver Fatigue
When you get hit by a tired driver, you need dedicated legal counsel to help you hold the drowsy driver responsible for your injuries and related losses. However, recovering from devastating injuries after a motor vehicle crash can take a long time. You deserve to focus your energy on healing and moving forward with life.
For over four decades, the fatigued driving accident lawyers at Poisson, Poisson & Bower, PLLC, have fought for the rights and interests of injured clients, helping them put their lives back together after catastrophic accidents. Accident victims in Wilmington and throughout North Carolina have turned to us for help because:
- We work hard to put our clients’ minds at ease by handling every detail of the accident claim from start to finish so that they can focus on treatment and rehabilitation.
- We have a reputation for outstanding client service and dedicated legal advocacy.
- We work with a bench of industry-leading experts who help us prepare compelling legal cases to fight for maximum financial recovery.
- We have the skill, knowledge, and resources to handle even the most complex cases, including taking them to trial when necessary.
- Our attorneys will always make themselves available to talk about the progress of a case or to answer questions.
- We can help clients find medical or specialist care.
- Clients owe no fees unless we recover compensation for them.
What Is Fatigued Driving and What Causes It?
Fatigued driving or drowsy driving occurs when a motorist suffers from physical or mental exhaustion that impairs their ability to drive safely. Unfortunately, many people have challenges and demands that increase exhaustion and tiredness, making it more likely that they get behind the wheel while sleep-deprived, with devastating effects on traffic safety.
Some of the top reasons why drowsy driving accidents occur include:
- Inadequate sleep, including not sleeping for enough hours or other factors that can reduce the quality of sleep, like alcohol consumption
- Long working hours or working night shifts which may result in shift workers not getting adequate sleep or throwing off the circadian rhythm
- Long commuting distances to work, which may require drivers to get up and hit the road in the early-morning hours
- Stress and anxiety, which can cause a person to become mentally exhausted
- Medications that increase tiredness or fatigue as a side effect
- Drug or alcohol use
- Health conditions that can interfere with sleep, such as insomnia, or that increase tiredness or fatigue, such as narcolepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, or low blood sugar
How Can You Prove a Driver Was Too Tired to Drive Safely?
A drowsy driver who causes an accident might not admit they felt overly tired. Instead, you may need to rely on other evidence to prove that the other driver caused the crash due to drowsy or fatigued driving, such as:
- Eyewitness testimony indicating that the driver was falling asleep behind the wheel
- Surveillance, traffic camera, or dashcam footage of the other driver’s behavior behind the wheel, like drifting out of their lane or failing to keep pace with traffic
- The driver’s cell phone records, social media postings, or work timecards that show how long the driver had been awake before the accident
- The driver’s medical records showing the driver suffered sleep disorders or a susceptibility to fatigue or drowsiness, either due to a health condition or as a side effect of medication
- Evidence that the driver did not brake or swerve, including a lack of skid marks on the road or information from the event data recorder (black box) logs
Common Injuries in Fatigued Driving Accidents in Wilmington
Because drowsy drivers may not take evasive actions to avoid a collision, drowsy driving crashes can involve violent forces that cause severe injuries.
Examples of injuries that may occur in drowsy driving-related crashes in Wilmington include:
- Lacerations and abrasions
- Burns and smoke inhalation from post-collision vehicle fires
- Dislocated joints
- Broken bones
- Ligament sprains
- Tendon and muscle strains
- Herniated spinal disc injuries
- Spinal cord injuries and paralysis
- Internal organ damage and internal bleeding
- Facial injuries
- Traumatic brain injuries
- Traumatic amputation or limb loss
Potential Compensation for People Hurt by Overly Tired Motorists
In a drowsy driving crash, you may have the right to recover compensation for the financial and personal losses you incur because of the crash. Compensation potentially available in your case may include:
- Medical treatment and rehabilitation expenses
- Costs of long-term care for prolonged or permanent disabilities caused by your injuries
- Lost income and employment benefits if you become disabled from work or suffer a reduction in earning capacity
- Physical pain and emotional distress
- Diminished quality of life caused by disabilities, permanent scarring, and disfigurement
- Costs of car repairs or reimbursement of the value of your totaled vehicle
How We Help People Injured in Fatigued Driving Crashes
At Poisson, Poisson & Bower, PLLC, we understand that victims of motor vehicle crashes can have difficulty proving another driver caused the accident due to fatigued driving. Turn to our firm for help with all the details of your fatigued driving accident case, including:
- Investigating the crash to secure evidence that proves your right to financial recovery
- Documenting your injuries and calculating your ongoing and future anticipated expenses and losses
- Evaluating your legal options for obtaining compensation, such as insurance coverage or legal claims against the at-fault driver
- Ensuring you get the medical treatment and rehabilitation you need to recover from your injuries
- Pursuing the financial relief you need through aggressive legal advocacy during negotiations or at trial
If you’ve sustained injuries in a crash caused by an overly tired or sleepy driver, get legal help to hold that driver liable for your losses. Contact Poisson, Poisson & Bower, PLLC, today for a free no-obligation consultation to learn how a drowsy driving accident attorney can help you fight for the maximum compensation you deserve.
