Important Information for Drunk Driving Victims
Attorney Lisa M. Lilly in Chicago, Illinois, understands the suffering and heartache experienced by drunk driving victims, because both of her parents were killed in a drunk driving accident. She is passionate about helping drunk driving victims recover adequately for their injuries.
For a free consultation with Ms. Lilly, call 866-389-3051 or contact her office online. To learn about what you can expect in your case, read on below …
About Criminal Proceedings
- Driving under the influence of alcohol is a crime. Therefore, the police and/or the state prosecuting attorney may contact you or your lawyer.
- If the alleged drunk driver is arrested, you are entitled to attend the court proceedings.
- Criminal cases can take months or years to resolve. The process can be very frustrating, disturbing and draining emotionally for drunk driving victims.
- The criminal penalties may vary depending upon the severity of the victim's injuries. Always keep the prosecutor informed of your or your loved one’s medical progress.
- You may write (or be asked to write) a victim impact statement explaining how the crime affected your life. If there is a trial or sentencing hearing, you or the prosecutor may read the statement in court.
How AAIM and MADD Can Help You
- Nothing can change what happened, but support from others can make a huge difference. The Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists (AAIM) and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) offer referrals to counseling and support groups that can help you cope with depression, anger, grief and anxiety following the crash.
- AAIM has victim advocates who will attend Illinois criminal court proceedings with you. If you cannot attend, your AAIM advocate can attend for you. The AAIM advocate cannot give legal advice, but he or she can answer questions and serve as a liaison between you and the prosecutor.
- Both AAIM and MADD can help you prepare your victim impact statement and give you samples of other victims’ statements.
- AAIM also offers financial support to victims of drunk drivers. In some cases, AAIM has paid for grave markers, bus passes to visit injured loved ones and dental and medical bills not covered by insurance.
Recovering Compensation for Injuries
Medical bills, funeral bills or the loss of wages could cause serious financial difficulties for you and your loved ones.
You may be able to obtain compensation through the Crime Victims Compensation Program. You can find more information about this, and an application, on the Illinois Attorney General’s web site.
You may be entitled to recover from the driver or the owner of the vehicle, or from the place where the driver was drinking. Your ability to recover will depend upon many things, like whether any of those people or companies have insurance and what other assets they have. Illinois law also sets certain limits on recovery from businesses that serve alcohol.
Some insurance carriers deny claims based on DUI incidents even when coverage actually exists. Just because you receive a denial of your claim does not necessarily mean you are not entitled to recover.
If the DUI driver and the vehicle's owner have no insurance, or if he or she has insurance but not enough to cover your damages, you may be entitled to recover from your own automobile insurance carrier if you have uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage or medical payments coverage.
An attorney can help you determine if you are entitled to compensation under your own automobile insurance policy, under other policies or from other sources, and can help drunk driving victims contest a denial of benefits.
Because Ms. Lilly has personally dealt with insurance companies to recover for losses caused by a drunk driver, she knows what questions to ask, what coverage is available, and what compensation to seek. For a free consultation with personal injury lawyer Lisa M. Lilly, call 866-389-3051 or contact her office online today.
