Reckless driving occurs when a person causes an accident by driving “any vehicle in reckless disregard for the safety of persons or property.” O.C.G.A.§ 40-6-350. Some examples of reckless driving include excessive speeding, street racing, weaving in and out of lanes rapidly, tailgating, and DUI. Whether the driver meets the criteria for reckless driving depends on the circumstances, such as how fast they were going and whether people were present.
With DUI, on the other hand, a driver is charged based on whether they were impaired by either drugs or alcohol. Even though DUI is a separate criminal charge in Georgia, a driver can be charged with both DUI and reckless driving after an accident. You can be awarded punitive damages for both as well, but the amount you can receive for a claim that only involves reckless driving is capped at $250,000. If DUI is also a cause, there is no limit.