September 24, 2026

I’m Being Blamed For a Car Accident That Wasn’t My Fault in New York City!

What to Do If You Are Blamed after a Crash

The moves you make in the first 72 hours protect your claim or cost you it. Follow the right steps in the aftermath of a crash immediately.

Call 911 and Get a Police Report

Call 911 even if the damage looks minor. Before the officer leaves, make sure they hear your full version of events, the police report is the first document every adjuster reaches for.

Do Not Admit Fault or Argue

Never say “I’m sorry” or “I didn’t see you” at the scene, even to be polite. The other driver’s insurer will take those words and use them to build a case against you.

Document the Scene and Vehicles

Photograph both vehicles, their positions on the road, all visible damage, skid marks, traffic signals, and road conditions before anything is moved. Also capture the other driver’s license, insurance card, and plate.

Get Medical Care Promptly

See a doctor as soon as possible after the crash. Injuries like whiplash and concussions often surface days later, so do not wait, and remember you have only 30 days from the accident to file for your PIP (Personal Injury Protection) benefits, your own insurer’s coverage for medical bills regardless of who caused the accident.

Notify Your Insurer without a Recorded Statement

You are required to report the accident to your own insurance company, but you are not required to give a recorded statement. Politely decline every time.

Save Bills, Lost Wages, and Repair Estimates

Start a folder immediately: medical bills, prescriptions, pay stubs, repair estimates, and every email or letter from any insurance company.

What to Say and Not Say to Insurance Adjusters

The other driver’s adjuster is trained to extract statements that damage your claim. Know what to say before they call.

Safe to Say	Never Say
“The crash happened at [location] on [date].”	“I’m sorry” or “It was partly my fault.”
“My attorney will provide additional details.”	“I didn’t see them coming.”
“I decline to give a recorded statement.”	“I feel fine” or “I’m not really hurt.”
“I’ll send anything further in writing.”	Any guess about speed, distance, or timing.

Once you hire Grigor Law Injury & Car Accident Lawyers, we take every adjuster call so one wrong sentence never costs you your case.

How to Dispute Fault in a New York Car Accident

An adjuster’s fault determination is not final. You can push back, and here is how.

A pattern we consistently see in Bronx fault disputes is an adjuster leaning entirely on a police report’s checkbox determination while ignoring EDR data that tells a different story. We pull the black box data before we even request the full report, because that record often reverses a bad blame call within days.

Correct Errors in the Police Report

Request your report from the NY DMV or your local precinct. If it contains errors, submit a written addendum with corrections, photos, and witness statements directly to the precinct that filed it.

Fight Wrong Tickets in Traffic Court

Do not pay a ticket from the scene. Paying is legally the same as pleading guilty, and the insurer will use it to justify blaming you for the crash.

Preserve Video and Phone Records Fast

Footage from businesses, MTA buses, doorbell cameras, and NYC traffic cameras may be overwritten or become unavailable quickly, so we send preservation letters immediately to lock down this evidence. We send preservation letters immediately to lock down this evidence before it disappears.

Use Event Data Recorder Data

Most modern vehicles contain an **EDR (event data recorder)**, a black box that logs speed, braking force, and steering input in the seconds before impact. We subpoena this data along with cell phone records to prove the other driver was speeding or distracted.

What Evidence Proves You Were Not at Fault

Strong evidence is what forces an insurer to reverse a bad blame decision.

Photos and video: Establish where each vehicle was positioned and exactly how the impact happened, giving you a visual record that cuts through conflicting accounts.

Independent witnesses: A neutral third party who saw the crash carries enormous weight in dismantling a false blame claim.

Damage patterns and skid marks: Accident reconstruction experts read the location of vehicle damage and skid geometry to determine point of impact and approximate speed.

Traffic violations: When the other driver broke a traffic law, ran a red light, failed to yield, or made an illegal turn, that creates negligence per se, a legal concept meaning the violation itself is evidence of fault.

Does the Police Report Decide Fault in New York?

No. A police report does not legally determine fault, only a judge or jury can do that. But insurers treat it as their starting point, which is why errors need to be corrected fast.

Officers are not accident reconstruction experts and often arrive after the fact with limited information. Police reports can be challenged as hearsay in court, and solid physical evidence consistently outweighs them.

Can You Recover Money If You Are Partly at Fault?

Yes. New York uses comparative negligence, meaning you can still recover compensation even if you share some blame, your payout is simply reduced by your percentage of fault, unless that fault is greater than the other driver’s, a bar that took effect May 26, 2026.

Example: If your damages total $100,000 and you are found 20% at fault, you still recover $80,000.

Why insurers inflate your blame: Every extra percentage point they pin on you is money they keep.

The bottom line: Being partly blamed does not end your claim, it means we fight hard to keep your fault percentage as low as the evidence allows.

What we see across the comparative negligence disputes we handle out of our Ridgewood office is an adjuster opening negotiations by assigning 40 or 50 percent fault with no real evidence behind the number, hoping you accept it before you have spoken to a lawyer. We push back on that number the same day it is offered.

How New York No-Fault and Serious Injury Threshold Work

New York’s no-fault law means your own insurer pays your initial medical bills and a portion of lost wages through PIP, regardless of who caused the crash. You must file your PIP application within 30 days of the accident or risk losing that coverage completely.

To sue the at-fault driver for pain and suffering, you must first prove a New York Insurance Law §5102(d). Qualifying conditions include:

A fracture (broken bone)

Significant disfigurement

Permanent loss or limitation of a body organ or member

Significant limitation of use of a body function or system

Death

Proving fault against the other driver only matters for a pain and suffering lawsuit once you clear this threshold.

Who Pays for Car Repairs and Rental in New York

PIP does not cover vehicle repairs. Your car gets paid for through the at-fault driver’s property damage liability coverage or your own collision coverage if you carry it.

Here is where blame creates a real problem: if the other driver’s insurer is disputing fault, they will refuse to pay for your repairs until the dispute is resolved, leaving you without a vehicle. This is one more reason to challenge blame as fast as possible.

What Deadlines Apply to NYC Car Accident Claims

A statute of limitations is a hard legal deadline to file a lawsuit. Miss it and your right to recover money is gone permanently.

No-Fault Application within 30 Days

Submit your PIP application to your insurer within 30 days of the crash to avoid losing your no-fault coverage entirely.

DMV MV-104 within 10 Days

New York requires a written accident report filed with the DMV within 10 days if the crash caused any injury or more than $1,000 in property damage.

Lawsuit Deadlines Including Claims against NYC

You have three years to sue a private driver for personal injury. Claims against New York City, the MTA, or any government entity require a Notice of Claim within 90 days of the accident.

Hit-and-Run Reporting Timelines

Report a hit-and-run to the police within 24 hours to preserve your right to collect under your own Uninsured Motorist coverage.

How We Build Your Case at Grigor Law

When an insurer tries to pin the crash on you, we take the fight directly to them.

Launch an Investigation and Secure Evidence

Led by founding attorney Chrissy Grigoropoulos, Esq., our team moves immediately, subpoenaing surveillance footage, securing EDR data, and locking down witness statements before evidence disappears.

Handle All Insurer Communications

Once you hire us, the insurance calls stop coming to you. We take over every communication and negotiate from a position of strength.

Bring in Experts and Go to Trial If Needed

We work with accident reconstruction specialists and medical experts to dismantle the insurer’s blame narrative. Insurance companies know we are prepared to take a case to verdict when they refuse to pay what you deserve.

Come to You and Work on Contingency

We have offices in Ridgewood (Brooklyn/Queens), The Bronx, and Hempstead (Long Island), serving all five boroughs, Long Island, and Westchester County. If you are too injured to travel, we come to you, and you pay nothing unless we win.

Get Legal Help Today

Evidence disappears and deadlines close fast. Do not let an insurance company rewrite what happened and leave you with nothing.

Call Grigor Law Injury & Car Accident Lawyers today at (718) 249-7447 for a free consultation. No fee unless we win.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will My Insurance Rates Go Up after a Not-at-Fault Accident in New York?

New York law generally prohibits insurers from surcharging you for an accident that was not your fault, but some carriers still raise premiums at renewal based on claim activity, another reason to document fault clearly from the start.

What If I Did Not Take Photos at the Scene?

A strong case can still be built without them. We recover surveillance footage, EDR data, and witness accounts to reconstruct what happened.

Can I Fix a Wrong Police Report in NYC?

Yes, submit a written addendum with your corrected account and supporting evidence to the precinct that filed the original report.

Who Pays If the At-Fault Driver Has No Insurance?

Your own Uninsured Motorist (UM) coverage steps in to pay your damages when the at-fault driver carries no insurance.

Do I Have to Give a Recorded Statement to the Other Driver’s Insurer?

No, you are never legally required to give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company, and you should politely decline every time.

Does a Traffic Ticket at the Scene Mean I Was Legally at Fault?

No. A traffic citation is evidence, not a verdict, and it can be contested in traffic court and overcome in your personal injury case.

Can I Get a Rental Car If the Other Driver’s Insurer Is Disputing Fault?

If their insurer is fighting fault, they will not pay for a rental until it is resolved, your own rental reimbursement coverage, if you carry it, is your best option while the dispute plays out.

Should I Hire a Lawyer If My Injuries Seem Minor after a Crash?

Yes, injuries that appear minor often worsen over time, and an unfair blame determination alone can cost you thousands in denied repairs and lost compensation.