What Happens If You Hit a Pedestrian While Driving? Will Insurance Pay?

Last Updated on September 24, 2026 by James Shaffer

If you hit a pedestrian while driving in New York, stop immediately and treat the situation as an injury accident. Call 911 when someone is injured or may need medical attention, provide the required identifying and insurance information, notify your insurer promptly, and make sure any required accident reports are filed.

Insurance coverage can be different from what many drivers expect. New York No-Fault insurance generally provides benefits to a pedestrian struck by a motor vehicle regardless of who caused the accident. A separate liability claim may also be possible when the driver was at fault, although New York’s rules for recovering damages changed in 2026.

What Should You Do After Hitting a Pedestrian?

If your vehicle strikes a pedestrian, stop immediately. Do not leave the scene, even if the person says they feel fine or you believe the collision was minor.

• Call 911 if anyone is injured or may need medical attention. Do not try to determine the seriousness of an injury yourself.
• Stay at the scene. New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 600 requires a driver who knows or has reason to know that another person was injured to stop and provide specified identifying, license, and insurance information.
• Report the incident to police. If no police officer is at the scene, New York law requires the driver to report an injury incident as soon as physically able to the nearest police station or judicial officer.
• Document the scene if you can do so safely. Photos, witness contact information, traffic signals, road conditions, and the location of the pedestrian can become important when insurers determine what happened.
• Notify your insurance company promptly. Give your insurer the facts of the accident without guessing about injuries or admitting legal responsibility.

The New York State Senate’s current text of Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 600 explains a driver’s duties after an accident involving personal injury.

Do You Need to File an Accident Report?

Yes, if anyone was injured or killed. New York requires a driver involved in a crash resulting in personal injury or death to file a Report of Motor Vehicle Crash (Form MV-104) with DMV within 10 days. The same requirement applies when damage to the property of any one person exceeds $1,000.

The New York DMV’s MV-104 instructions state that injury crashes must be reported to police and that the driver must file the DMV report within 10 days. Reporting the accident to your insurance company does not replace this legal reporting requirement.

See our separate guide on filing a police report after an accident in New York.

Will Insurance Pay If You Hit a Pedestrian?

Usually, insurance can provide coverage, but different parts of the policy handle different losses.

No-Fault Coverage for the Pedestrian

New York’s No-Fault system is especially important in pedestrian accidents. According to the New York State Department of Financial Services, all pedestrians injured by motor vehicles in New York State are protected by No-Fault coverage.

A pedestrian generally files the No-Fault claim with the insurer of the vehicle that struck them. Basic No-Fault coverage can provide up to $50,000 per eligible injured person for covered economic losses, including accident-related medical treatment, a portion of lost earnings, and certain other necessary expenses. These benefits are generally available regardless of who caused the accident.

That means a pedestrian does not necessarily have to prove that the driver was negligent before obtaining covered medical benefits or eligible lost-wage benefits. You can learn more about Personal Injury Protection in New York and the state’s No-Fault insurance rules.

Liability Coverage

Liability coverage addresses your legal responsibility for injuries and property damage you cause. New York requires automobile liability insurance, and your policy’s liability coverage may respond if you are legally responsible for injuring a pedestrian, subject to the policy’s terms and limits.

Liability can become especially important when an injured pedestrian seeks compensation beyond basic No-Fault benefits or seeks non-economic damages such as pain and suffering. New York generally requires a qualifying “serious injury” before a covered person can recover non-economic damages arising from a motor vehicle accident.

Damage to Your Own Vehicle

If your own vehicle is damaged when it strikes a pedestrian or another object, your optional collision coverage may cover eligible damage to your car, minus the deductible and subject to your policy terms.

Who Is at Fault When a Car Hits a Pedestrian?

There is no automatic rule that the driver is always at fault. Insurers, attorneys, and courts examine what both the driver and pedestrian were doing immediately before the collision.

A driver could be found negligent for conduct such as speeding, running a traffic signal, failing to yield at a crosswalk, distracted driving, or otherwise failing to exercise appropriate care. New York DMV emphasizes that drivers must be alert for pedestrians and yield where the law requires.

For example, New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1151 generally requires drivers to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks when traffic-control signals are not operating, while also providing that a pedestrian may not suddenly leave a curb or place of safety and enter the path of a vehicle when the vehicle is too close for the driver to yield.

If you believe the pedestrian caused or contributed to the collision, that can matter when determining liability. It does not, however, automatically eliminate the pedestrian’s eligibility for New York No-Fault benefits.

What If the Pedestrian Was Crossing Outside a Crosswalk?

Older discussions of pedestrian accidents often describe anyone crossing outside a crosswalk as “jaywalking” and assume that doing so automatically makes the pedestrian responsible. New York law is more nuanced.

Under New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 1152, a pedestrian crossing a roadway somewhere other than a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection must yield the right-of-way to vehicles on the roadway. A pedestrian also generally cannot cross an intersection diagonally unless traffic-control devices authorize it.

However, crossing outside a crosswalk does not by itself decide who is legally responsible for an accident. The driver’s speed, visibility, opportunity to avoid the collision, traffic signals, pedestrian behavior, and other circumstances can all be relevant.

How Does Pedestrian Fault Affect Compensation?

New York changed an important part of its comparative-negligence law in 2026. For motor vehicle personal injury actions subject to Article 51 of the Insurance Law that are commenced on or after May 26, 2026, an injured claimant is barred from recovering damages if the claimant’s share of culpable conduct is greater than the fault of the person or combined persons against whom recovery is sought.

In practical terms, a pedestrian found more responsible for the accident than the defendant or defendants can now be barred from recovering damages in an applicable personal injury action. When the pedestrian’s share of fault does not cross that threshold, any recovery can still be reduced in proportion to the pedestrian’s responsibility.

This rule comes from the current version of New York CPLR Section 1411. The New York Department of Financial Services explains that the change took effect May 26, 2026, for actions and proceedings commenced on or after that date.

This liability analysis is separate from basic No-Fault benefits, which are designed to pay covered economic losses without first establishing negligence. Whether a pedestrian or driver was at fault for the accident therefore can affect a liability lawsuit even when No-Fault benefits remain available.

What If the Pedestrian Damages Your Car?

If a pedestrian’s negligence caused the collision, a driver may potentially pursue the pedestrian for resulting property damage. However, you should not assume that the pedestrian has insurance that will automatically pay the claim.

If you carry collision coverage, filing a claim under your own policy may be an option. Your insurer can then determine whether it has a right to pursue another responsible party for reimbursement. Coverage, deductibles, and recovery rights depend on the circumstances and policy.

Can You Face Tickets or Criminal Charges?

Hitting a pedestrian does not automatically mean the driver committed a crime. Whether a driver receives a traffic ticket or faces criminal charges depends on what happened before and after the collision.

Potential legal consequences can become more serious when conduct such as reckless driving, excessive speed, or driving while impaired or intoxicated is involved, particularly when a pedestrian suffers serious injury or death.

Leaving the scene creates a separate problem. New York Vehicle and Traffic Law Section 600 imposes duties on drivers following an accident involving personal injury, and violations involving serious physical injury or death can carry felony consequences. See our guide to hit-and-run accidents for more information.

When Should You Consider an Attorney?

Consider speaking with an attorney if the pedestrian was seriously injured, fault is disputed, you receive legal papers, criminal charges are possible, or the claimed damages could exceed your liability limits.

Your insurance company normally investigates covered claims and provides a defense against covered lawsuits according to the policy terms, so notify the insurer promptly and forward any demand letters or legal documents you receive.

An injured pedestrian may also want legal advice when substantial injuries, disputed fault, or damages beyond No-Fault benefits are involved. Time limits apply to lawsuits, and our guide to New York car accident lawsuit deadlines provides additional information.

FAQs on Hitting a Pedestrian in New York