New York Car Accident Lawyer

After a car accident in New York, the question everyone wants answered is simple: How much is my case worth? The answer depends on what you lost—financially, physically, and emotionally. In legal terms, those losses are called damages. And New York law divides them into three categories.

Economic Damages

Think of economic damages as the easy math.

These concrete, measurable losses come with a price tag. 

• Medical Expenses
  Ambulance rides, emergency room visits, surgeries, hospital stays, physical therapy—every dollar adds up. Even follow-up appointments, prescription medications, and medical equipment like braces or wheelchairs fall into this category. New York’s no-fault insurance law (Article 51 of the New York Insurance Law) covers the first $50,000 through Personal Injury Protection (PIP). Once your costs exceed that amount—or you meet the serious injury threshold outlined in Section 5102(d)—you can seek additional compensation from the at-fault driver.
• Lost Wages
  Time off work means lost income. Whether you missed a few days or months of paychecks, you can claim that lost income. If the accident caused long-term or permanent disability, the calculation includes future lost earnings. A forensic economist may be brought in to project how much money you would have earned over your career.
• Property Damage
  Your car didn’t survive the crash? Repairs or replacement costs fall under property damage. The insurance company for the at-fault driver typically pays for this, although in no-fault cases, your own policy may initially cover repairs while liability gets sorted.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages are harder to quantify. There’s no receipt for chronic pain or the fear that creeps in every time you hear screeching tires.

These damages cover how the accident affected your life beyond the numbers.

• Pain and Suffering
  This includes physical pain from your injuries and the emotional distress that comes with it. New York doesn’t have a strict formula for calculating pain and suffering. Instead, factors like the severity of the injury, the length of recovery, and the impact on daily life are considered.
• Loss of Enjoyment of Life
  If your injuries prevent you from doing things you once loved—whether it’s playing sports, traveling, or even playing with your kids—that loss matters. Compensation is available for diminished quality of life.
• Loss of Consortium
  This applies when the injury affects your relationship with a spouse. Loss of companionship, affection, or sexual intimacy falls under this claim. In New York, spouses can file a separate claim for loss of consortium.

Punitive Damages

Most car accident cases in New York focus on compensating the victim. But in rare cases, the court decides the at-fault driver’s reckless or outrageous behavior warrants extra punishment. That’s where punitive damages come in.

Drunk driving crashes are a common example. If a driver with a blood alcohol content (BAC) far above the legal limit (0.08% under New York Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1192) caused the accident, the court may award punitive damages to punish that behavior and deter others.