On May 27, 2026, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law significant amendments which impact the ability of parties injured in automobile accidents to recover money damages. 

 Three major changes have gone into effect, including the elimination of an injury category to qualify for non-economic damages, a cap to a plaintiff’s recovery who is convicted of certain crimes out of the accident, and changes to a plaintiff’s right to recovery where plaintiff holds the majority at fault.

 These changes will be explained in a series of three blog posts.

 This first post covers perhaps most dramatic change to New York motor vehicle accident personal injury litigation, the elimination of the 90/180-Day serious injury category.

Elimination of the 90/180-Day Serious Injury Category

 For the vast majority of personal injury cases involving motor vehicle crashes, plaintiffs seek to recover damages associated with pain and suffering for the injuries they have suffered. Simply receiving economic damages, such as lost wages, is helpful but does not fully compensate an injured plaintiff for what they have been through as a result of the negligence of another driver. In most situations, to bring a lawsuit that seeks pain and suffering damages, a plaintiff must have suffered what is known as a serious injury under the New York State Insurance Law.

A serious injury is statutorily defined as:

1. Death;
2. Dismemberment;
3. Significant disfigurement;
4. Fracture;
5. Loss of Fetus;
6. Permanent Loss of use of a body organ, member, function or system; or
7. Permanent consequential limitation of use of body organ or member; or
8. Significant limitation of use of a body function or system.

 Previously, there was a ninth category; a plaintiff could recover damages from the defendant driver and satisfy the “serious injury threshold” by demonstrating a medically determined, non-permanent injury or impairment that prevented the performance of substantially all of plaintiff’s customary daily activities for at least 90 of the 180 days immediately following the accident. However, the new legislation removes the 90/180-day category from the definition of “serious injury” under New York Insurance Law § 5102(d).

 This is a significant change that will cause many who are significantly injured to not have a right to bring a lawsuit and seek pain and suffering damages. The category commonly known as “90/180” was a sort of catchall that permitted folks who were significantly injured in a car accident, but who did not break a bone in a car accident, to have the right to bring a lawsuit seeking full damages and compensation for their injuries. Now, these people may not be able to bring a suit like they could have previously. Think of those with significant and serious soft tissue injuries, torn ligaments, concussive issues or rotator cuff injuries.

If you have a potential personal injury case, the attorneys at Flink Maswick Law PLLC are pleased to evaluate your matter free of charge. Please do not hesitate to contact us.

Parts 2 and 3 to come.