Car Accident
Car accidents can bring life to a halt. Whether it’s a major collision or minor crash, we help you navigate the aftermath, deal with insurance, and fight for maximum financial recovery.
Relentless. Local. Proven.
Queens Personal Injury & Car Accident Lawyers
Hurt in a car accident, a fall, or a hit and run in Queens? Ribowsky Law has won for injured New Yorkers since 1992, from our office on Jamaica Avenue. You pay nothing unless we win.
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About Ribowsky Law
Trusted Injury Lawyers Serving Queens for Over 30 Years
Michael and Mark Ribowsky have represented injured people across Queens since 1992, from an office on Jamaica Avenue in Richmond Hill. Between them they have handled car accidents, slip and falls, hit and runs, construction injuries and rideshare crashes in every part of the borough, and they know the local courts, the insurers and the roads that produce these cases.
Most people who call us are not sure whether they even have a case. That is a fine reason to call. We will tell you what your claim is likely worth, which deadline applies to it, and whether you need a lawyer at all, before you commit to anything.
You don’t pay unless we win. Call 718-659-5333 and we will tell you where you stand.
A Track Record Of Success
It’s Time To Win Your Case, Big.
Michael D. Ribowsky and his accident lawyers in Queens, NY have years of experience dealing with individual claims relating to either physical or psychological injuries through the negligence of another party. There are several variables that go into a successful case where timing and details can make all the difference. Hiring professional local injury attorneys is suggested to increase the chances of receiving the compensation the injured party deserves. Ribowsky law takes all Queens personal injury cases seriously and does whatever it takes to make sure you receive maximized compensation, which is dependent upon where and how you were injured and the damages it caused.
What does a personal injury lawyer do?
The pain and suffering a person can endure from a car accident can last a lifetime. Severe injuries, employment lost because of paralysis, and other heavy expenses will likely become a way of life for these victims.
Most injury victims in the Big Apple consider getting their costs covered by their auto insurance company but sometimes, the insurance companies fall short of providing you the compensation which you truly deserve. Sometimes, your insurance company will settle with you and provide you with your additional funds. Other times, you will not receive the payout you are looking for because the other side is fighting back to impose their expenses on you. You can believe the insurance company or responsible party will have legal representation.
This is usually the point where you will seek the help of a qualified law firm Ribowsky Law to either help you settle directly with the other party involved in the accident or injury and if they refuse we can head to the courtroom to face them.
So what are you waiting for? Don’t short-change yourself and retain the firm that will provide you with the integrity and the financial results you have been searching for.
What should you do after a car accident in Queens?
Get medical attention the same day, even if you feel able to walk away. Call the police so there is a report. Photograph the vehicles, the road and your injuries. Get the other driver’s insurance details. And say as little as possible to their insurer until you have spoken to a lawyer.
That last one matters more than people expect. The other side’s adjuster usually calls within days, sounds helpful, and asks you to describe injuries you do not yet understand. What you say in that call follows the claim for years.
How does no-fault insurance work in New York?
New York is a no-fault state. Your own insurer pays your medical bills and lost earnings up to $50,000 per person, whoever caused the crash. Insurance Law 5102(a) calls this “basic economic loss.”
No-fault is fast, and it is limited. It does not pay anything for pain and suffering, and it stops at $50,000. A serious injury, a long recovery or permanent damage has to be claimed from the driver who caused it, and that is a different case with different rules.
What counts as a “serious injury” in New York?
It is a legal test, not a medical one, and it decides whether you can claim for pain and suffering at all. Insurance Law 5102(d) sets out the categories:
- Death
- Dismemberment
- Significant disfigurement
- A fracture
- Loss of a fetus
- 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
- An injury that stops you performing substantially all of your usual daily activities for at least 90 of the 180 days after the accident
The last two are where most cases are won and lost. Insurers argue the limitation is not “significant,” or that the 90 days were not met. Proving it takes medical records, consistent treatment and often expert evidence, which is why gaps in treatment damage claims so badly.
What is a Queens injury claim worth?
Nobody can give you a number on a first call, and anyone who does is guessing. What a claim is worth turns on the medical evidence, how long you could not work, whether the injury is permanent, and how much insurance the other side carries.
What we can tell you early is whether your claim clears the serious injury threshold, what the insurer is likely to argue, and which deadline applies. In practice that is more useful for making a decision than a number would be.
How long do you have to bring a claim?
Three years from the date of the accident in most cases. But if a city vehicle, an MTA bus, the subway or a public hospital is involved, you have 90 days to serve a notice of claim before you are allowed to sue at all. We have written a full guide to the deadlines that apply in New York.
Where do accidents happen in Queens?
Queens Boulevard, the Van Wyck Expressway, Woodhaven Boulevard, the Grand Central Parkway and Hillside Avenue produce most of the crashes we see. Around Jamaica Center the pattern changes — heavy pedestrian traffic crossing wide roads, with buses, the AirTrain and the Long Island Rail Road converging within a few blocks.
If your case is litigated, it will most likely be heard at Queens County Supreme Court, 88-11 Sutphin Boulevard in Jamaica. Our office is a short drive away on Jamaica Avenue in Richmond Hill, which keeps appearances, depositions and meetings local for you rather than sending you into Manhattan.