Content reviewed by:
Alex Shulman
Call 911, get medical care, write down the taxi’s medallion number, and document the scene with photos and witness names. Then file a no-fault claim within 30 days so your medical bills and part of your lost wages can be paid. If your injuries are serious, you may also be able to file a claim against the driver or the taxi’s owner.
Knowing what to do after a taxi accident in Manhattan can protect both your health and your claim. At Shulman & Hill Injury Lawyers, a taxi accident lawyer in Manhattan helps passengers, pedestrians, cyclists, and other drivers sort out which insurance pays and who may be at fault.
What Steps Should You Take Right After a Manhattan Taxi Accident?
Get out of traffic if you can do so safely, and call 911 if anyone is hurt. If you think you hurt your neck or back, stay still unless staying put is dangerous. Once you are safe, and only if your condition allows, take these steps:
- Get the medallion number. It appears on the cab’s hood, roof light, license plate, partition, and your receipt.
- Get the driver‘s details. Write down the driver’s name, TLC license number, and insurance information.
- Photograph the scene. Capture the vehicles, your injuries, traffic signals, and the nearest cross streets.
- Collect witness names. Ask bystanders for their names and phone numbers.
- Save your trip record. Keep the receipt, the card charge, or the app confirmation.
- Get the police report number. Ask the officers how to request a copy later.
Stick to the facts at the scene, and do not say you are fine before you have been checked. These steps work the same way for any crash our car accident lawyer in Manhattan handles, but the medallion number is unique to cabs. Shulman & Hill uses it to trace the cab’s owner and insurer.
Why Should You See a Doctor Even if You Feel Fine?
Whiplash, concussions, and back injuries often do not hurt right away. Adrenaline can hide pain for hours or days. A severe headache, confusion, or dizziness that gets worse needs emergency care.
Tell the doctor you were in a taxi crash and describe every symptom. Follow the treatment plan and keep records of visits, prescriptions, and missed work. Gaps in treatment give insurers a reason to argue you were not really hurt.
Shulman & Hill sees medical records as the backbone of a taxi injury claim, since they show when symptoms started and how the crash changed your life.
How Does No-Fault PIP Work for Taxi Passengers?
No-fault insurance, also called personal injury protection (PIP), pays for crash-related care no matter who caused the accident. As a taxi passenger, you generally file with the taxi’s no-fault insurer. Pedestrians and cyclists hit by a cab usually file there as well, though coverage questions can come up.
PIP generally covers at least $50,000 in basic losses. That includes medical bills and 80% of lost wages, up to $2,000 a month. You generally must give written notice of your claim within 30 days of the crash, so ask the taxi’s insurer for the claim form right away.
PIP does not pay for pain and suffering. Shulman & Hill helps clients file the no-fault claim on time while we look into a separate injury claim.
Can You File a Claim Against the Taxi Company?
You can file a claim beyond no-fault if your injury meets the state’s serious injury threshold. That includes injuries such as a fracture, a significant limitation on how a body part works, or an injury that keeps you from your normal activities for 90 of the first 180 days.
Parties who may be responsible include:
- The taxi driver, if speeding, distraction, or an unsafe turn caused the crash
- The medallion owner, who is generally liable for a driver it allowed to use the cab
- A fleet or management company, depending on how it ran the cab and hired the driver
- Another driver, if that driver caused or added to the crash
The claim usually starts with the taxi’s liability insurer, and a lawsuit is filed in the state Supreme Court if the claim does not settle. Shulman & Hill has recovered more than $1 billion for clients, and insurers know we’re not afraid to take them to court if they offer poor settlements.
Do You Need to Report the Taxi Accident?
Report any crash with injuries to the police. A police report records who was involved and what officers saw, though it does not settle who was at fault. Shulman & Hill can request the police report and the taxi’s trip records once we take your case.
Drivers involved in a crash with injuries, or more than $1,000 in property damage to any one person, must also file a report with the state DMV within 10 days. Passengers generally do not have to file that report.
What Should You Say to an Insurance Adjuster?
Give basic facts, but do not guess about speed, distance, fault, or how badly you are hurt. If you do not know an answer, say so. Keep notes of every call, including the adjuster’s name and claim number.
Think twice before giving a recorded statement to the other side’s insurer or signing a medical release. Early offers are common, and a signed release usually ends your right to ask for more, even if your injuries turn out to be worse.
Once Shulman & Hill represents you, calls from the other side’s insurer go through us instead of you.
How Long Do You Have to Take Legal Action?
The no-fault notice is due within 30 days. Many injury lawsuits must be filed within three years of the crash. Claims against the city or another public agency, such as a crash with a city vehicle, generally need a notice of claim within 90 days. The lawsuit itself is then due within one year and 90 days.
Waiting also costs evidence. Business cameras and dashcams record over footage quickly. Shulman & Hill moves quickly to preserve that footage after a Manhattan taxi accident.
Get Answers About Your Taxi Accident Claim
The first steps after a taxi accident in Manhattan are simple: get care, get the medallion number, document the scene, and file your no-fault claim on time. The harder part is deciding whether your injuries support a claim against the driver or the taxi’s owner.
Shulman & Hill works on contingency, so you pay no fee unless we win. Contact Shulman & Hill today for a free case review before a deadline passes.