Passenger Injury Claims in New Jersey: Who Pays After an Accident?

Being a passenger in a car accident puts you in an unusual position. You almost never share fault for the crash, yet figuring out which insurance policy actually pays your bills can be more complicated than it is for either driver.

New Jersey's no-fault system means your medical bills are generally covered regardless of who caused the crash, but which policy applies first, and what additional claims you can pursue, depends on your own insurance situation and how many vehicles and drivers were involved.

Who Pays a Passenger's Medical Bills?

New Jersey requires most auto policies to include personal injury protection, commonly called PIP, which pays medical bills and lost wages regardless of who caused the crash. For a passenger, the order of coverage generally works as follows: if you own a car and carry your own auto policy, your own PIP coverage typically applies first, even if you were riding in someone else's vehicle. If you do not own a car or carry your own policy, the PIP coverage on the vehicle you were riding in generally steps in instead. In rarer situations involving an uninsured vehicle, New Jersey's Unsatisfied Claim and Judgment Fund can provide a safety net of last resort.

Can You Sue the Driver of the Car You Were In?

Yes. If the driver of the vehicle you were riding in was negligent, whether through speeding, distracted driving or another form of carelessness, and that negligence caused or contributed to the crash, you can generally pursue a claim against that driver just as you could against any other negligent driver. Many people assume they cannot sue the person who was doing them a favor by giving them a ride, but New Jersey law does not carve out an exception for that relationship.

What if Multiple Vehicles Were Involved?

If more than one driver's negligence contributed to the crash, a passenger can generally pursue claims against each of them. This matters significantly when it comes to available insurance, since each driver's policy is a separate potential source of recovery. Identifying every vehicle and driver involved, and every applicable insurance policy, is often one of the most valuable things a passenger's attorney can do, particularly in a multi-vehicle collision.

Does a Passenger Have to Prove Fault?

Not to receive PIP benefits for medical bills and lost wages, which pay out regardless of fault. To recover pain and suffering damages beyond what PIP covers, a passenger generally still needs to show that a driver's negligence caused the crash, the same standard that applies to any negligence claim. As someone who was not operating either vehicle, a passenger is rarely found to share any percentage of fault for how a crash happened in the first place.

Attorney insight: Passengers sometimes hesitate to pursue a claim against a friend or family member who was driving. I always explain that the claim is against that driver's insurance policy, not their personal finances, which is often the piece of the puzzle that changes how people feel about moving forward.

Does the Verbal Threshold Apply to Passengers?

It depends on the passenger's own insurance situation, not the driver's. A passenger who owns a vehicle and selected the limitation on lawsuit option on their own auto policy is generally subject to the same six category verbal threshold that applies to drivers who made that same choice. A passenger who does not own a car or carry an auto policy of their own is often not bound by the same restriction, since the tort option is tied to the passenger's own coverage status rather than to whichever vehicle they happened to be riding in. This distinction is worth having reviewed closely, since it can significantly affect what damages a passenger can pursue.

Can a Passenger Access More Than One Insurance Policy?

Sometimes, depending on the specific policies involved and how many vehicles contributed to the crash. Beyond the driver's liability coverage, a passenger may also have access to underinsured motorist coverage under an applicable policy if the at fault driver's insurance is insufficient to cover the injury. Because multiple overlapping policies can potentially apply to a single passenger's claim, sorting out which coverage applies, and in what order, is one of the more technical parts of a passenger injury case.

How Long Do You Have to File a Claim?

In most cases a passenger has two years from the date of the crash to file a lawsuit under N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2, the same general deadline that applies to drivers. If a government vehicle or a road defect may have contributed to the crash, a much shorter 90 day notice of claim requirement can apply instead under the New Jersey Tort Claims Act.

How Can a Lawyer Help a Passenger After a Crash?

I start by identifying every vehicle, driver and insurance policy involved in the crash, since a passenger's claim often draws on more layers of coverage than either driver's own claim would. From there I confirm which PIP policy applies, whether the verbal threshold restricts pain and suffering damages based on the passenger's own coverage status and negotiate with every applicable insurer, all on a no win no fee basis.

The Bottom Line

As a passenger, you are rarely at fault for the crash that hurt you, but figuring out who actually pays requires untangling PIP coverage, the driver's insurance, the other driver's insurance and your own policy status, if you have one. Getting that untangled correctly is often what determines the full value of a passenger's claim.

If you were hurt as a passenger in a crash anywhere in Passaic, Bergen, Essex or Morris County, I would be glad to review every policy that may apply and give you a straight answer on your options.