By Mark Kand · Kand Personal Injury Lawyers
Getting hurt in an Uber puts you in a claim with more insurance companies, shorter deadlines and less margin for error than an ordinary car accident. Most passengers find that out weeks later, after a deadline has already passed.
Our office recently recovered $100,000 for an Uber passenger. The crash happened at Utopia Parkway and Union Turnpike, by St. John’s University, a few minutes from Fresh Meadows. Here is how that case came together, and what anyone injured in a rideshare in Queens needs to understand before they talk to an insurance company.
The case
Our client was a passenger in an Uber when another car ran the red light and struck the side of the car. At the scene she felt shaken but not seriously hurt, which is very common. Adrenaline masks pain, and a day or two later the neck and back pain set in. She ended up in months of physical therapy, and eventually needed injections for the back pain.
The insurance carrier opened where they almost always open in a neck and back case: these were minor sprains that would clear up on their own. The case turned on two things. Proving the injuries were more than that, and identifying exactly which policy was responsible for which part of the loss.
We went after the at-fault driver’s insurance. They pushed back, we kept pushing, and we recovered the full $100,000 policy without going to trial.
Every Uber injury is really two claims
An injured passenger in New York has two separate claims running at the same time. Different rules, usually different insurance companies. Confusing the two is where people lose money.
Claim one: no-fault, for medical bills and lost wages
New York is a no-fault state, so it does not matter who caused the crash. Basic economic loss under Insurance Law §5102(a) is $50,000 per person, and it covers:
- Necessary medical and rehabilitation expenses, paid at the state fee schedule
- 80% of lost earnings, capped at $2,000 a month, for up to three years from the accident
- Up to $25 a day for other necessary expenses, such as travel to medical appointments, for one year
- A $2,000 death benefit
For a passenger, this claim goes through the insurance on the vehicle you were riding in, not your own policy. Vehicles licensed by the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission carry more no-fault coverage than the $50,000 minimum, which matters when treatment runs long.
What the lost wages rule actually pays. Say you earn $5,000 a month. Eighty percent of that is $4,000, but the monthly cap is $2,000, so that is what no-fault pays. Three months out of work is $6,000 in wage benefits, not $12,000, and every dollar of it comes out of the same $50,000 that is also paying your MRIs and your physical therapy. This is why the difference between the two claims matters. The rest of that lost income is only recoverable in the injury claim against the driver who caused the crash.
The deadlines inside the no-fault claim. Regulation 68 (11 NYCRR 65-1.1) sets three, and they are shorter than people expect:
| What | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Written notice of the claim to the insurer | 30 days from the accident |
| Medical bills submitted by your providers | 45 days from the date of treatment |
| Lost earnings and other expenses | 90 days |
A late notice is not always fatal. The regulation allows it where there is a reasonable justification for the delay, and the written notice does not have to be the NF-2 form itself. But that is an argument you have to win, and the simplest way to avoid it is to file inside 30 days.
Claim two: the injury claim, for pain and suffering
No-fault never pays for pain and suffering, or for the part of your lost income it does not cover. For that, you bring a claim against the driver who caused the crash, and New York puts a threshold in front of that claim. Under Insurance Law §5102(d) you must show a serious injury, which means one of these:
- A fracture
- Significant disfigurement
- 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
- Death, dismemberment or loss of a fetus
What changed in 2026. New York removed the old “90/180-day” category, which let an injured person qualify by showing an injury kept them from substantially all of their usual activities for 90 of the first 180 days after the crash. For motor vehicle cases commenced on or after 26 May 2026, that route is gone. Soft-tissue cases that used to survive on the 90/180 category now have to meet one of the categories above, which puts the weight on the medical proof.
In neck and back cases, this is where the fight happens. The insurer sends the injured person to its own doctor, who writes that everything is normal. What answers that is objective evidence: MRI findings, range-of-motion testing measured in degrees against normal values, and treatment records that stay consistent from the first visit onward. In our case, building that record is what moved the number.
Why Uber cases involve more insurance than an ordinary crash
TLC commercial coverage
Uber and Lyft drivers in New York City must be licensed by the TLC and insured commercially. For a standard for-hire vehicle carrying up to seven passengers, the TLC’s insurance rules require at least $100,000 per person and $300,000 per accident in liability coverage, plus $100,000 in no-fault. A private car in New York only has to carry $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident. So the vehicle you were riding in usually carries four times the coverage of the car that hit it.
Who caused the crash decides whose policy pays
- Another driver caused it. The injury claim goes against that driver’s liability policy, which may be a bare 25/50 policy. When it is too small for the harm done, supplementary underinsured motorist (SUM) coverage may be available, depending on which policies are in play.
- The Uber driver caused it. The claim goes against the driver’s TLC commercial policy, which carries the higher limits above.
- Both share the blame. Claims can be brought against both. A passenger is rarely found to share any blame, and that matters more since 26 May 2026: an injured person more than 50% at fault in a motor vehicle case now recovers nothing, where before the change they recovered a reduced amount no matter how much of the fault was theirs. Outside motor vehicle cases, such as slip-and-falls, the old rule still applies.
Uber’s arbitration agreement
Every Uber account comes with terms of service containing an arbitration agreement. In 2024, New York’s highest court enforced one in Wu v. Uber Technologies. The rider in that case was struck by another car after her Uber driver let her out in the middle of a Brooklyn road. She had already sued Uber when a pop-up in the app asked her to accept updated terms, she clicked to accept, and the court held that click was enough to send the dispute toward arbitration.
That agreement binds you and Uber. It does not touch your no-fault benefits, and the driver who hit you never agreed to it. Which claims it reaches is something to work out at the start of a case, not after one has been filed. Our Uber accident lawyers look at it in every rideshare case.
Where Uber claims go wrong
The 30-day notice is missed
The clock runs while someone is in pain, missing work and waiting to see whether it settles down. By the time they call a lawyer, the 30 days are gone, and now the claim starts with an argument about whether the delay was justified instead of an argument about the injury.
The bills arrive after the 45-day window
This one rarely gets noticed until the bills start coming back denied. Providers have 45 days from treatment to submit. A clinic that bills slowly can put thousands of dollars outside the coverage, and the injured person is the one who hears about it from a collection agency.
Treatment stops too early
Gaps are the defense’s favourite exhibit. Two months away from therapy becomes “she was better by August”. Real reasons for a gap exist, including cost, childcare and a denied authorization, but they have to be in the record at the time, not explained afterward.
A recorded statement is given
The other driver’s carrier often calls within days, sounds helpful, and asks to record your version while you are still medicated and unsure what hurts. Those statements come back to minimize the injury or to suggest the pain came from somewhere else. You are not required to give one to the other driver’s insurer.
The trip record is never saved
The app shows the driver, the vehicle, the route and the time. Screenshot it the same day. Trip data can be requested later, but a case is much easier when the facts were never in dispute.
The case settles before anyone knows how bad the injury is
A settlement comes with a release, and a release is final. An injury that turns out to need surgery cannot be reopened because the claim closed at three months. Most claims should not resolve until the course of treatment is clear.
Deadlines to sue
- Personal injury: three years from the accident, under CPLR 214(5).
- A city or government vehicle involved: a Notice of Claim within 90 days under General Municipal Law 50-e, and a much shorter window to sue.
- Wrongful death: two years from the date of death.
These are the outside limits, not targets. Evidence goes stale long before them, and the no-fault deadlines above arrive within the first month.
What to do after an Uber or Lyft crash in Queens
- Call 911 and make sure a police report is made.
- Screenshot the trip in the app: the driver, the plate, the route, the time.
- Photograph the vehicles, the intersection and any visible injuries.
- Get the other driver’s information and the names and numbers of witnesses.
- See a doctor the same day or the next, and describe exactly how the crash happened.
- File the no-fault notice within 30 days.
- Say nothing recorded to the other driver’s insurer until you have spoken with a lawyer.
- Stay off social media about the accident and your recovery.
If this happened to you
A free consultation costs you nothing and answers the two questions that actually matter early: which policies are available, and what the medical record needs to show. You can see more of our outcomes on our case results page, read about how we handle local cases on our Fresh Meadows car accident lawyer page, or contact us directly. Call (718) 998-6788. There is no fee unless we win.
Frequently asked questions
Who pays my medical bills if I’m hurt as an Uber passenger in New York?
No-fault pays them first, no matter who caused the crash, and for a passenger that is the insurance on the vehicle you were riding in. TLC-licensed vehicles carry $100,000 in no-fault coverage. Written notice is due within 30 days of the accident.
Can I sue Uber directly after an accident?
Sometimes, but Uber’s terms of service contain an arbitration agreement, and New York’s highest court enforced it against an injured rider in 2024. Claims aimed at Uber itself may have to be arbitrated. Claims against the drivers and their insurers are handled separately.
How much is an Uber accident case worth in Queens?
There is no standard figure. It depends on the injury, the treatment, the effect on work and daily life, and how much insurance is available. The $100,000 result described here was the at-fault driver’s full policy, and it reflects that case’s facts.
Did New York’s car accident laws change in 2026?
Yes. For motor vehicle cases commenced on or after 26 May 2026, an injured person more than 50% at fault recovers nothing, and the 90/180-day route to the serious injury threshold was removed. Both changes reward early evidence and consistent medical treatment.
The insurance company offered me money already. Should I take it?
An early offer usually arrives before anyone knows whether the injury needs surgery, and accepting it means signing a release that ends the claim for good. Find out what your treatment plan looks like first, and have someone check what coverage exists before you sign anything.
Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. This article is general information about New York law, not legal advice about any particular situation.