Car Accident in NYC? Get an Experienced Attorney.

We know how to handle car insurance companies.

The crash itself may have been over in seconds, but the consequences can last a lifetime. If you’ve been injured in a car accident in New York, you know firsthand just how tough the aftermath can be. You have medical bills piling up. You may not be able to work, care for loved ones, or do the things you love. The insurance company is breathing down your neck. It’s a tough situation, but you don’t have to go it alone.

Keogh Crispi, P.C. has a strong track record of results for New Yorkers injured in car crashes, including a $2 million recovery for a mother and son who were hit by a car. It doesn’t matter if your accident was a low-speed rear-end crash or a catastrophic collision: if you were hurt by the negligence of another driver, we are here to help you. Contact us for a free consultation with an experienced New York City car accident lawyer.

Hundreds are killed in NYC car crashes every year, and thousands injured. If you’re involved in a collision, there are steps you can take to protect your health and your right to compensation.

What should I do after a car accident?

There are several things you can do after a car accident:

Call the police and remain at the scene until they arrive (unless you have to leave to get emergency medical care). The police accident report will become a key piece of evidence. Get the investigating officer’s name and badge number, as well as the contact information for any witnesses – but don’t say anything admitting fault.
Seek medical attention as soon as possible, even if you feel okay. Getting checked out by a doctor is the best way to protect your health. It also creates a record of your injuries that can help with your claim for compensation.
Gather some information about the other driver and any witnesses. Ask for their names and contact information. Also ask for the other driver’s insurance information.
If you can, take photos and video of the accident scene from different angles. You can also take photos of any visible injuries that you have.
Talk to an NYC car accident lawyer right away, before you talk to the insurance company. Insurance adjusters are there to protect the insurance company’s interests. They’re not on your side. We are.

Leave the insurance company to us.

Almost immediately after an accident, insurance company representatives try to get victims to talk about it with them. They’ll say that they just want information so they can efficiently process your claim, but their real job is to minimize the cost to their employer – which means reducing or denying your claim. Insurance representatives are trained to use dishonesty to shrink or eliminate legitimate claims by unfairly shifting the blame on victims.

That’s why it’s critical that you talk to your lawyer before your insurance company. We are experienced professionals, well-seasoned in insurance tactics, who can handle those conversations. Our founding attorney, Pat James Crispi, is deeply familiar with the tactics insurance companies use to minimize claims – and the strategies that work best to counter them. We know how to build a winning strategy to maximize the value of your case.

How car accident compensation works in New York

New York is a “no-fault” state for car accidents. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter who was at fault; it means that injured people generally have to file a “first-party” claim with their own insurance company first.

Every vehicle registered in New York is required to carry no-fault insurance, which means your own policy provides some compensation for your accident-related medical expenses and lost wages regardless of who caused your accident, up to the policy limit. Although fault isn’t an issue, the insurance company may argue that a particular injury isn’t accident-related or dispute the amount of treatment you need. We can represent you in negotiations with your insurance company and fight to make sure you get the compensation you need.

In addition to no-fault coverage, if your accident was caused by another motorist and you sustained a serious injury, you can file a bodily injury (BI) lawsuit to get compensation from their liability insurance. This type of claim can provide compensation for damages not covered by no-fault insurance, including pain and suffering. If the other motorist doesn’t have insurance, your uninsured motorist protection (UM) stands in for their insurance. You can also purchase underinsured motorist protection (UIM), which provides supplemental coverage if the at-fault driver has some insurance, but not enough to cover the full cost of your accident.

It may be necessary to file a lawsuit to recover the compensation you deserve. An experienced New York lawyer can help you file the formal documents for filing a suit in the appropriate jurisdiction and guide you through the process. Your lawyer may be able to negotiate a settlement, often after the discovery process, in which evidence is exchanged. But there are times in which a case may have to be decided at trial.

New York’s laws regarding car insurance are complex, and again, the insurance companies use that complexity to their advantage. We would be happy to review your policy and help you understand the value of your case during a free consultation.

How much is your car accident worth?

A single accident can change your life permanently. Depending on the extent of your injuries, you may have significant medical expenses and be unable to work for a long time. Your career may be affected. You may be unable to care for your children or maintain your home. These are called economic damages; that is, losses that are tied for a specific dollar figure. Some examples of economic damages include:

Medical expenses, both past and future, including ambulance fees, hospitalization, surgery, medication, follow-up care, physical therapy, mental health services, and even mileage to and from your medical appointments.
Lost wages and lost earning potential, including lost opportunities for promotion and other effects on your career. We may hire an expert, such as an economist, to quantify those future losses.
Replacement services for tasks that you are unable to complete at home due to your injuries, such as childcare, cleaning, or yard work.
Modifications to your home or vehicle due to a disability.
Property damage to your vehicle or any other property that was in it.

In addition, we can pursue compensation for non-economic damages, such as pain and suffering, loss of consortium, and loss of quality of life. While these damages are more subjective, they are nevertheless real losses you’ve experienced, and getting compensation for them is part of making you whole again. If the conduct that led to your accident was especially reckless or negligent, we may be able to pursue punitive damages intended to punish the at-fault party and send a particularly strong message. This is sometimes an option in crashes caused by drunk drivers, for instance.

When you add up the full cost, even a seemingly minor accident can be worth far more than you might initially expect. Of course, the insurance company’s goal is to pay out as little as possible, so they may deliberately ignore those long-term costs and offer a settlement that just covers the initial medical treatment and property damage. We put in the effort to listen to your story, understand the full impact that the crash has had on your life, and fight for the full amount of compensation you’re entitled to receive under New York law.

We understand the legal issues that arise in different types of car accidents.

How your case unfolds will depend on the circumstances in which your accident happened. We have the experience and resources to handle all types of car accident claims, including:

Rear-End Accidents: When the driver of one vehicle strikes the rear of another, liability is usually clear – but that doesn’t mean your case will be easy. Insurance companies often dispute the extent of injuries in a rear-end case, especially if the crash happened at low speed.
T-Bone Accidents: These types of crashes can cause severe injuries because the side of a vehicle provides much less protection than the front or rear. They can also be tricky to litigate because witnesses may disagree on which vehicle had the right of way. T-Bone crashes often happen at intersections, which are inherently chaotic and confusing.
Head-On Collisions: When two vehicles collide head-on, the injuries sustained can be catastrophic because of the sheer force involved. Insurance companies fight hard to dispute these claims because they are often worth significant amounts of money. Moreover, witnesses may disagree on which car was going the wrong way.
Rollover Accidents: If a vehicle rolls over, there are three possible causes: the road conditions, the driver, and the vehicle itself. Often, manufacturers are responsible for rollover injuries – even if their mistake didn’t cause the rollover, they may have designed the vehicle in a way that provides poor protection in a rollover.
Speeding Accidents: Driving well above the posted speed limit is dangerous and negligent driving behavior that makes it more difficult to control the vehicle. We may be able to prove a driver was speeding by interviewing witnesses, reviewing any existing video, reading through the accident report, and if needed, consulting accident reconstruction experts.
Drunk Driving Accidents: Drinking can slow reaction time, affect judgment, and even impair vision. But a driver in an accident may deny being impaired. We review accident reports, talk to witnesses, seek access to medical records, and retrace the driver’s movements before the crash to look for evidence of impairment.
Hit and Run: Leaving the scene of an accident is a serious crime in New York, but some drivers do it anyway. If the driver who hit you is found, a hit-and-run case proceeds much the same way as any other car accident. If they aren’t found, we can pursue an uninsured motorist claim.
Lyft and Uber Accidents: The growing popularity of rideshare services has made the legal environment for car accident victims more complex. Depending on the circumstances, you may be entitled to compensation from the driver’s personal insurance or from the rideshare company. We can sort this out.

No matter what type of accident you’re dealing with, there is one universal truth: the attorney you choose will make all the difference. We’re prepared to see you through the process from start to finish.

We have the experience to investigate all types of car accident cases.

In New York, car accidents happen every day, and they happen amid an often-chaotic environment. Getting to the bottom of what happened can be challenging. For instance, if your crash happened at an intersection, witnesses may disagree on who had a red light or which vehicle had the right of way. Physical evidence may be seemingly inconclusive. This game of “he said, she said” just benefits the insurance company. As the injured person, you’re caught in the middle.

Our legal team has the experience and resources to launch a full investigation and piece together what happened. We pore over accident reports, cross-reference witness statements, and make sure the most important witness of all – you, as the injured person – is ready to testify. We frequently retain accident reconstruction experts to help us tell the story of what happened. In short, we refused to be outworked or outthought by the insurance company, because that’s the approach that gets results.

Our investigation has two main goals. First, we need to prove that the driver who hit you was at fault. Whether it was drunk driving, texting and driving, falling asleep at the wheel, or simply speeding or reckless driving, we will identify why your accident happened and fight to hold the at-fault driver accountable. Second, we identify all possible sources of compensation for your injury. We understand New York law and know how to navigate the insurance situation to get you full value.

Count on Keogh Crispi, P.C. to handle your car accident claim.

When looking for legal representation, you want a lawyer who has experience with car accident cases in New York City. You want an attorney with a record of results. You want a law firm that will listen to what happened and is committed to helping you get the compensation you deserve.

From the free initial consultation to the eventual resolution of your case, we’re focused on building you a winning strategy. When you come to us, we’ll listen to your story. You were there, you know what happened, and your account of the accident will be the key to getting fair compensation. We will then explain your legal options and, if you do choose to hire us, get right to work building the strongest case we can.

Our policy is to prepare every case for trial. When we get positive results, it’s because the insurance company can see that we are fully prepared to go before a judge and jury. They know our reputation, they know our track record of results, and when they see how prepared we are, they come to us ready to settle for a fair amount. If they won’t offer enough to meet your needs, we’ll take them to trial.

Throughout the process, you can depend on us to keep you informed and handle the day-to-day interactions with the insurance company while including you in strategic decisions. At each stage, we’ll make sure you know what’s coming next and are prepared for what you must do. Ultimately, your case is about more than money. It’s about making you whole again and helping you rebuild your life.

No fee unless we win your case

We handle car accident cases on a contingency fee basis, which means we only get paid if we win. You don’t pay us anything out of pocket. If we recover money for you, our fee is a percentage of that recovery; if we don’t win, you don’t owe us a cent. We work this way because we believe everyone should have access to justice, regardless of ability to pay.

In short, you have every reason to talk to an experienced car accident lawyer at our firm about your legal options – and you should do it soon. Under New York law, you usually have up to three years to file a bodily injury lawsuit, but you shouldn’t wait that long. We need to start building your case quickly, before evidence disappears and witnesses forget what they saw. Give us a call or contact us online to schedule your free consultation.