Queens Pedestrian Accident Lawyer: Your Rights After Being Hit by a Car in NYC

Queens is the borough where New York City’s traffic safety gains are most visible — and where being on foot still carries real risk. If you or a family member was struck by a vehicle, a Queens pedestrian accident lawyer can explain something most people do not know: in New York, the driver’s insurance pays your medical bills first, before anyone decides who was at fault. Understanding how that works, and what it does not cover, is the foundation of a pedestrian injury claim.

Pedestrian Deaths in Queens: The Current Picture

The numbers have moved in the right direction. According to the New York City Department of Transportation, the city recorded 205 traffic deaths in 2025 — the fewest since record-keeping began in 1910, and a 19% drop from 253 in 2024. Pedestrian deaths fell to 111, down 9% year over year.

Queens saw one of the sharpest improvements of any borough: 57 traffic deaths in 2025, a 23% decline from 74 the year before. Since Vision Zero launched in 2014, citywide traffic deaths are down 31%.

Those are genuine gains. But 57 deaths in one borough, plus thousands of non-fatal injuries, means the wide arterial roads that define Queens — Queens Boulevard, Northern Boulevard, Woodhaven Boulevard, Rockaway Boulevard, Jamaica Avenue — remain the places where a routine walk turns into a hospital admission.

Right of Way: What New York Law Actually Requires

Under Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1151, a driver must yield the right of way to a pedestrian crossing within a crosswalk when there is no traffic control signal. Drivers may not overtake another vehicle that has stopped to let a pedestrian cross — the classic multiple-threat collision that causes some of the most severe injuries in the city.

New York City layers additional duties on top of the state rule, including the Right of Way Law, which makes it a misdemeanor for a driver to injure a pedestrian who has the right of way. A traffic summons or criminal charge against the driver is powerful evidence in a civil claim, though it is not automatically decisive.

Crucially, a pedestrian struck outside a marked crosswalk is not barred from recovering. New York follows pure comparative negligence: fault is apportioned, not used as a gate. A pedestrian found 30% responsible for crossing mid-block still recovers 70% of the damages.

No-Fault Benefits Cover Pedestrians Too

This surprises most injured pedestrians. You do not need to own a car, and you do not need to prove the driver was careless, to have your treatment paid. Under Insurance Law § 5102, the no-fault policy on the vehicle that struck you generally covers:

• Reasonable and necessary medical expenses
• 80% of lost earnings, up to $2,000 per month for up to three years
• Up to $25 per day in other reasonable and necessary expenses
• A $2,000 death benefit

Basic no-fault coverage is capped at $50,000 in most cases. Two deadlines govern it, and both are unforgiving: the NF-2 application must be filed within 30 days of the accident, and medical bills must generally be submitted within 45 days of treatment. Missing either can forfeit benefits entirely.

If the driver fled or was uninsured

Hit-and-run pedestrian cases are not hopeless. If the vehicle is never identified, benefits may be available through your own auto policy, a resident relative’s policy, or the Motor Vehicle Accident Indemnification Corporation (MVAIC). MVAIC claims carry their own short notice deadlines — typically 90 days — so these cases need attention immediately.

When You Can Sue for Pain and Suffering

No-fault pays economic losses. It does not pay for pain, suffering, or diminished quality of life. To recover those, an injured pedestrian must cross the “serious injury” threshold in Insurance Law § 5102(d), which covers:

• Death or dismemberment
• Significant disfigurement
• A fracture
• Loss of a fetus
• Permanent loss of use of a body organ, member, function, or system
• Permanent consequential limitation of use of a body organ or member
• Significant limitation of use of a body function or system
• A medically determined injury preventing substantially all usual daily activities for 90 of the 180 days following the accident

Pedestrian collisions involve an unprotected body against several thousand pounds of steel, so fractures, traumatic brain injuries, and spinal injuries are common — and a fracture alone satisfies the threshold. The case is proven with imaging, treating-physician narratives, range-of-motion testing, and a consistent treatment record. Insurers challenge the threshold aggressively, often through an independent medical examination designed to establish that you had recovered.

Evidence That Wins Pedestrian Cases

Liability in a pedestrian case is often disputed, with the driver claiming the pedestrian “came out of nowhere.” The evidence that resolves that dispute has a short shelf life:

• Surveillance video. Bodegas, banks, residential buildings, and NYPD ARGUS cameras cover much of Queens. Most systems overwrite in 7 to 30 days. A preservation letter sent in week one is often what saves a case.
• The police accident report (MV-104A) and any traffic summons issued.
• Vehicle event data recorder downloads, which can establish speed and braking.
• Signal timing records from NYC DOT, which can show who had the walk phase.
• Witness statements taken before memories fade.
• Scene photographs showing sight lines, lighting, crosswalk markings, and vehicle resting position.

Deadlines You Cannot Miss

The default statute of limitations for personal injury in New York is three years from the accident under CPLR § 214. But if the vehicle was a city bus, a sanitation truck, an MTA vehicle, or any other government vehicle, a notice of claim must be served within 90 days, and suit filed within one year and 90 days. That shortened clock catches families constantly — particularly in bus accident cases.

Speak With a Queens Pedestrian Accident Lawyer

Pedestrian claims move on two tracks at once — a no-fault track with 30- and 45-day deadlines, and a liability track that depends on evidence disappearing from hard drives right now. Yakov Mushiyev & Associates represents injured pedestrians across Queens and handles the full range of personal injury matters, including car accidents, truck accidents, and motorcycle accidents. See our case results, read client testimonials, or contact us for a free consultation.

Call 718.775.3110 · mushiyevlaw.com

General information, not legal advice. Attorney Advertising.