What to do after a car accident in New Jersey or New York

Most people never plan for a car accident, so they end up making decisions while hurt, shaken and short on sleep. Insurance companies, on the other hand, handle crashes every day. This guide helps even that out.

The steps below follow the calendar. Save this page on your phone or share it with a family member who can help. Where New Jersey and New York rules differ, we say so.

At the scene

1. Check for injuries and call 911. Ask for police and an ambulance if anyone is hurt. Unless there is a fire or another immediate danger, do not move someone who complains of neck or back pain.
2. Stay at the scene. New Jersey law requires a driver involved in a crash to stop, give his or her name and address, show a license and registration, and give reasonable help to anyone injured.¹ In New York City, the NYPD tells drivers to stay and exchange license, registration and insurance information with every other driver involved.²
3. Report the crash to police. New Jersey requires the driver to notify police by the quickest means available when a crash injures or kills anyone or causes more than $500 in damage to any one person’s property.³ Calling 911 from the scene is the simplest way to get an officer there in either state.
4. Photograph everything. Take wide shots showing where the vehicles ended up, then close-ups of all damage, license plates, debris, skid marks, traffic signals and signs, and road and weather conditions. Photograph visible injuries too. A slow video walking around the scene catches details you will not think of in the moment.
5. Collect information. For every driver, get the name, phone number, license number, plate number, insurance company and policy number. If a driver does not own the car, get the owner’s name. Note whether the vehicle was a rideshare, delivery or company vehicle. Write down each officer’s name, badge number and the report number.
6. Find witnesses. Ask bystanders for names and phone numbers. Look for cameras on stores, homes, buses and traffic poles.
7. Watch what you say. Be polite, but do not apologize, guess about speeds or argue about fault. Tell the police and the EMTs about everything that hurts, even if it seems minor.
8. Accept medical help. If the EMTs recommend the hospital, go. Turning down an ambulance is one of the first things an adjuster will point to later.

The first 24 hours

1. See a doctor. If you did not go to the hospital from the scene, go to an emergency room, an urgent care center or your own doctor. Adrenaline can hide pain, and symptoms of concussion and neck injuries can take hours or days to appear. Describe every symptom and say that it started with the crash.
2. Notify your own insurance company. In New Jersey, the personal injury protection (PIP) coverage on your own auto policy pays medical expenses after a crash no matter who caused it. A standard policy provides up to $250,000 in PIP medical benefits unless you chose a lower limit.⁸ Ask your insurer to open a PIP claim, write down the claim number, and ask for the PIP application. Our New Jersey PIP guide explains how it works.
3. In New York, start the no-fault claim. New York’s no-fault system also pays medical bills, and part of your lost wages, regardless of fault. The rules require written notice to the no-fault insurer within 30 days of the accident, and a completed application for no-fault benefits (form NF-2) counts as that notice.⁶⁷ Our New York no-fault guide covers the details.
4. Write down what happened. While it is fresh, write a note or record a voice memo. Include the time, where you were going, what you saw, what the other driver said, and how your body felt.
5. Keep physical evidence. Do not throw away damaged clothing, glasses, a helmet, a child car seat or anything else involved. Photograph your car before it is repaired, and ask the insurer to photograph it before anything is scrapped.
6. Go quiet online. Do not post about the crash, your injuries or your activities. More on this below.

The first week

1. File New York’s MV-104 if it applies. New York requires every driver involved in a crash in the state to send a written report to the DMV within 10 days when anyone is killed or injured, or when damage to any one person’s property is more than $1,000.⁴ The form is the MV-104, and missing the deadline is a misdemeanor that can lead to suspension of your license or registration.⁵ File it even if police came to the scene.
2. Check whether New Jersey needs a written report from you. New Jersey also requires a written report to the Motor Vehicle Commission within 10 days, but not if a law enforcement officer files a written report of the crash.³ If police responded and took a report, make sure you have the report number. If no officer took a report, contact the Motor Vehicle Commission about filing your own.
3. Request the police report. Where you get it depends on which agency responded. - New Jersey police use a standard crash report form known as the NJTR-1.⁹ For a crash handled by a local department, contact its records bureau, which may point you to an online request service. For a New Jersey State Police crash, including on the Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, use the State Police online request site.¹⁰ - For an NYPD crash, you can request the report at the precinct during the first 30 days or through the NYPD’s online collision report portal, where it can take up to seven business days to appear. After 30 days, requests go to the DMV on form MV-198C.¹¹ - For a New York State Police crash, request the report from the DMV on form MV-198C. Processing can take three to six weeks, and Thruway crashes use a separate process.¹²
4. Follow up on every referral. If the emergency room told you to see your doctor, an orthopedist or a neurologist, make that appointment this week.
5. Start a pain and limitations journal. See the section below.
6. Save every receipt. Prescriptions, copays, braces, mileage to appointments, rides, and help you had to pay for at home all count.
7. Do not give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer. You do not have to, and what you say can be used to limit your claim. Our guide to talking to insurance adjusters explains why.
8. Talk to a lawyer. A short consultation can flag deadlines early. If a government vehicle, public bus or public road was involved, notice deadlines can be much shorter than the usual time to sue (see our guide on notice of claim against public entities).

The first month

1. Keep every appointment. Follow your doctors’ treatment plans, including physical therapy and testing. If you cannot make an appointment, reschedule it instead of skipping it.
2. In New York, make sure bills reach the no-fault insurer on time. The regulations require proof of claim for medical treatment within 45 days after the services are rendered, and for lost earnings within 90 days after the work loss is incurred.⁶ Most providers bill the no-fault insurer directly, but ask them to confirm.
3. Document time missed from work. Keep pay stubs, and ask your employer for a letter confirming your pay rate and the days you missed. Ask your doctor for a written note for each period you are out of work.
4. Handle the car separately. Repairs, a total loss and a rental car are usually handled as a separate property damage claim. Read anything you sign to settle the car claim and make sure it releases only property damage.
5. Do not sign releases or medical authorizations from the other insurer. The section below explains why.
6. Get organized. Keep one folder, paper or digital, with the police report, claim numbers, photos, medical paperwork, receipts and your journal.

Why gaps in treatment hurt claims

Insurance companies study your treatment dates. If you waited two weeks to see a doctor, or stopped going to therapy for a month, an adjuster will argue that you were not really hurt, that you healed, or that something else caused your pain. Juries hear the same argument.

This matters even more in auto cases. Many New Jersey drivers have the limitation on lawsuit option, often called the verbal threshold, which requires proof of a permanent injury or another qualifying injury before you can recover for pain and suffering (see our verbal threshold guide). New York’s serious injury threshold works in a similar way (see our serious injury guide). Consistent medical records are how those injuries get proven.

Life gets in the way sometimes. If cost, transportation, childcare or work makes treatment hard, tell your doctor and your lawyer instead of quietly stopping. There is often a solution, and a documented reason for a gap is far better than an unexplained one.

Social media and your claim

Assume the insurance company will see anything you post. In New Jersey, an appeals court has held that even private social media posts can be discoverable in a lawsuit when they are relevant.¹³ Expect the same scrutiny in a New York case.

A photo of you smiling at a family party can be used to suggest you are not in pain, even if you spent the next two days in bed. The safest course is to stop posting until your case is over, ask friends and family not to tag you, and tighten your privacy settings. Do not delete old posts after a crash. Deleting material that may be evidence can cause bigger problems than the posts themselves, so ask your lawyer first.

Keeping a pain and limitations journal

Months from now, someone will ask how this injury changed your life, and memory fades. A short note each day, or at least a few times a week, solves that problem. Cover things like these.

• Your pain level and where it hurts
• How you slept
• Tasks you could not do or needed help with, such as work, cooking, cleaning, childcare, driving or lifting
• Events, workouts or plans you missed
• Medications and any side effects
• How you are feeling emotionally

Keep it honest and factual. Do not exaggerate, and record the good days along with the bad ones. Assume the other side may see it one day, because a journal can be requested in a lawsuit. An honest journal builds credibility. Bring it to doctor visits so you remember to mention every symptom.

Do not sign releases or medical authorizations from the other insurer

Within days, the at-fault driver’s insurance company may send you paperwork. Two kinds of documents deserve special caution.

A release is a document that ends your claim, usually in exchange for a payment. Once you sign it, you generally cannot reopen the claim, even if you later learn you need surgery. A quick check for a few thousand dollars can come with a release of everything.

A medical authorization lets the insurer collect your medical records directly from your providers. The forms adjusters send are often unlimited in time and scope, reaching back years into unrelated history the company can use to argue your injuries were pre-existing. Nothing requires you to sign one for the other driver’s insurer. When records do need to be shared, a lawyer can send the relevant ones, limited to the injuries and time period that matter.

What to keep in your glove box

A small envelope in the glove box makes the scene easier to manage.

• Your current registration and insurance card (keep your license with you)
• A pen and a small notepad
• A card listing emergency contacts, your doctor, your medications and your allergies
• Your insurance company’s claims phone number
• A phone charging cable
• A small first aid kit and a flashlight
• Reflective triangles or road flares
• A printed copy of this checklist