According to a recent report, Texas’s ongoing problem with motor vehicle accidents related to drunk driving are not just an issue for motorists traveling after dark. While the common perception of drunk driving is that it happens after an evening or afternoon of partying, this recent study suggested that almost 17% of all fatal car accidents in Texas that happened between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. were related to drunk driving.
This percentage placed Texas fourth among all the states. Moreover, Texas’s number was way above the national average. Across the country, just under 11% of all fatal accidents during the mid-morning and early afternoon hours involved drunk driving.
The study blamed these statistics on the recent fad, popular among young people, of going out to brunch. More Millennials are using brunch as an opportunity to enjoy a good meal with their friends. Also, enterprising restaurant owners have responded by offering alcoholic beverages, like mimosas, during brunch. What once was a rather odd practice of drinking during brunch has now become fashionable as a result.
However, when crunching the numbers, it is possible to attribute Texas’s apparent daytime drinking and driving problem to a number of causes, even setting aside the popularity of a brunch complete with alcoholic drinks. The bottom line is that drinking and driving, and the deadly results of such reckless behavior, are a 24-hour-a-day problem.
No matter when it happens, a victim of a drunk driving accident, or his or her family, should not hesitate to evaluate legal options to see if they can obtain necessary and just compensation from the drunk driver responsible for their loss.
