New York Car Accident Laws 2024 Guide – Forbes Advisor – Technologist

The New York State Department of Financial Services explains the minimum requirements for insurance coverage in the Empire State. Here are the coverages that every driver is expected to purchase:

• Personal Injury Protection (PIP). This pays for up to $50,000 in injury-related losses the policyholder experiences in an accident regardless of who was to blame. After a minor car accident, victims are generally required to use their own PIP coverage to pay for costs associated with car crash injuries.
• Bodily injury liability. Drivers must have $25,000 in bodily injury liability coverage per person for accidents not resulting in a death or $50,000 in coverage for injuries resulting in a death. They also must have a total of $50,000 in injury liability per accident for nonfatal crashes and $100,000 for fatal crashes.
• Property damage liability. Motorists are required to have a minimum of $10,000 in property damage liability per accident.
• Uninsured motorist coverage. This protects against injury-related losses policyholders suffer when the driver responsible for an at-fault accident has no insurance. Drivers must buy the same amount of uninsured motorist coverage as their bodily injury liability limit.

In many situations, drivers can, and should, buy more than the minimum coverage.

Most drivers want larger policy limits because losses from a car crash can be much costlier than a minimum-coverage policy would pay for. The required protections also don’t pay for a policyholder’s own losses such as damage to their vehicle in a crash they caused.

Buying added protection can help drivers ensure their assets and their financial stability are not at risk.

The New York State Department of Motor Vehicles explains the requirements for when a crash must be reported. According to the DMV, Section 605 of the New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law requires that a crash must be reported if:

• a person is hurt or killed
• property damage for anyone involved exceeds $1,000

Reporting any motor vehicle accident is usually smart so police can prepare the required report. Without a police report, it can be harder to prove how the accident happened or whether there were any factors that likely led to the accident, such as a speeding or drunk driver.

The information the police obtain from the crash scene and the report they prepare can be invaluable in helping crash victims take legal action against a driver who caused an auto accident. This makes it easier to get full and fair compensation for losses.

Car accident laws differ from state to state. For example, Florida’s car accident laws differ from Georgia’s car accident laws, which differ from New York laws.

New York is considered to be a no-fault state, which means drivers who suffer more minor injuries must pursue compensation from their personal injury protection (PIP) coverage. They cannot sue the other driver, even in cases of speeding accidents or distracted driving car accidents where the other motorist was clearly to blame.

New York crash victims can hold other drivers liable for their losses only if their injuries are sufficiently serious. In these circumstances, the victim must prove the other driver’s violations of safety rules or lack of reasonable care behind the wheel was the direct cause of the crash.

New York also follows pure comparative negligence rules, so even if another driver bears only a very small percent of the blame, a crash victim can take action to recover compensation from them. A motorist who was 5% responsible for the accident can be made to pay 5% of damages.

New York Code Section 214 of the Civil Practice Law & Rules establishes a three-year statute of limitations for auto accident cases. As the NY Courts website makes clear, this time clock begins running on the date that the accident happened.

If more than three years have passed from the time of the crash, victims will no longer be able to move forward with suing the driver who caused the crash. Their claim is time-barred and it will be too late to get the compensation that they deserve.

This is why it’s so important to take swift action to get legal help and begin the process of making a claim after a crash.

The information on this page does not constitute legal advice, nor does use of or access to this page create an attorney-client relationship between any parties. Information provided on Forbes Advisor is for informational purposes only. Your legal situation is unique and the attorneys and services we rank may not be right for your circumstances. Consult with an attorney to obtain advice on your particular legal matter.