Yes. If you are injured as a passenger in a Massachusetts car accident, you may be able to pursue compensation even though you were not driving. Depending on the facts and available insurance, benefits may come from Personal Injury Protection, liability coverage for a negligent driver, uninsured motorist coverage, underinsured motorist coverage when purchased, or more than one policy.
Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 231, Section 85L specifically allows a passenger who was exercising due care to recover from a vehicle operator when the operator’s ordinary negligence caused the passenger’s injuries or damages.
Hoey Law helps injured passengers understand the insurance and liability questions that can follow a crash. Although you may be less involved in the fault dispute than the drivers, your claim still depends on evidence, medical documentation, insurance coverage, and the cause of the collision. Hoey Law handles personal injury and car accident matters throughout Massachusetts.
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Can a Passenger Sue the Driver of the Car They Were Riding In? 
Yes. You may have a negligence claim against the driver of the vehicle in which you were riding if that driver’s conduct caused or contributed to the crash.
Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 231, Section 85L addresses passenger claims directly. If you were exercising due care, you may recover from the operator by proving ordinary negligence that resulted in your injuries or damages.
The driver may be a friend, relative, coworker, rideshare driver, or another person you know. That relationship does not eliminate a potential injury claim. The practical focus is often on the insurance coverage that applies to the vehicle and driver.
Massachusetts auto insurance has an important distinction for guest passengers. Compulsory Bodily Injury to Others coverage does not cover injury or death to a passenger in the insured vehicle. Optional Bodily Injury to Others coverage can extend bodily injury protection to passengers in that vehicle, subject to the policy’s terms, limits, and exclusions.
For example, suppose you are riding through North Reading when your driver follows another vehicle too closely and causes a rear-end collision. If you are injured, PIP may address certain no-fault losses, and optional bodily injury coverage may provide another source of recovery if the driver was negligent and the policy includes that coverage.
You can have a valid passenger injury claim even when the driver who caused the crash is someone you know. Available insurance coverage should be reviewed before you assume that no claim exists.
What If Another Driver Caused the Accident?
If another driver caused the collision, you may have a claim against that driver. Speeding, running a red light, unsafe lane changes, distracted driving, following too closely, and other failures to use reasonable care can support a negligence claim when they cause an injury.
When another vehicle’s driver is legally responsible, that driver’s bodily injury liability coverage may apply. If the responsible driver has no insurance, mandatory uninsured motorist coverage may become relevant. If the responsible driver has insurance but not enough coverage to address your damages, underinsured motorist coverage may apply if that coverage was purchased and you qualify under the policy.
Some crashes involve more than one negligent driver. A multi-vehicle collision on Interstate 93, Route 1, the Massachusetts Turnpike, or another Massachusetts roadway may require a review of each driver’s conduct, police reports, vehicle damage, witness accounts, photographs, video, and insurance information.
How Does PIP Cover an Injured Passenger in Massachusetts?
Massachusetts uses a no-fault automobile insurance system. Personal Injury Protection, commonly called PIP, can pay certain covered losses without first requiring you to prove which driver caused the collision.
PIP generally covers passengers in an insured Massachusetts vehicle, subject to policy terms, exclusions, and any applicable deductible. PIP can provide up to $8,000 per person for covered losses, including reasonable and necessary medical expenses, up to 75 percent of lost wages, and certain replacement services.
If you have private health insurance, benefit coordination can affect how medical bills are paid. When PIP is available and an applicable PIP deductible does not change the payment order, PIP generally pays the first $2,000 in covered medical expenses. Health insurance then becomes primary for covered medical expenses above that amount. Remaining PIP benefits may pay eligible deductibles, copayments, and reasonable treatment that the health plan does not cover, subject to the remaining PIP limit and policy rules.
PIP is only one part of a passenger injury claim. If your injuries, lost income, or other damages exceed what PIP pays, a review of liability, uninsured motorist, underinsured motorist, MedPay, commercial, rideshare, and other available coverage may be necessary.
Meet the attorneys who handle injury matters for the firm:
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Can a Passenger Recover Pain and Suffering Damages?
Possibly. Massachusetts places a threshold on recovery for pain and suffering in many motor vehicle injury cases.
Under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 231, Section 6D, you generally must incur more than $2,000 in reasonable and necessary medical and related treatment expenses before recovering pain and suffering damages. The statute also recognizes certain injuries without requiring you to satisfy that expense threshold. Those exceptions include death, loss of a body member, permanent and serious disfigurement, specified loss of sight or hearing, and a fracture.
Accurate medical records can help establish the nature and extent of your injuries. Seek appropriate medical care, describe your symptoms accurately, follow reasonable medical advice, and keep records of treatment, bills, prescriptions, referrals, and time missed from work.
Which Insurance Policies May Apply to a Passenger Claim?
A Massachusetts passenger injury claim can involve several layers of insurance. The available source of compensation depends on who caused the crash, which vehicle you occupied, what policies apply, and the terms and limits of those policies.
Potential coverage may include:
- Personal Injury Protection connected to the vehicle you occupied
- Bodily injury liability coverage available from another negligent driver
- Optional Bodily Injury to Others coverage when the negligent driver was operating the vehicle you occupied
- Uninsured motorist coverage when an uninsured or unidentified driver caused the crash
- Underinsured motorist coverage when purchased and the at-fault driver’s available insurance is insufficient
- Medical Payments coverage, commonly called MedPay, when purchased
- Commercial automobile coverage when a business vehicle is involved
- Rideshare-related coverage when the facts and policy terms make it applicable
Massachusetts requires uninsured motorist coverage. State insurance guidance also confirms that passengers can be protected by applicable uninsured motorist coverage, although coverage priority and policy terms can affect which policy responds.
Insurance questions can become more complicated if you have your own Massachusetts auto policy, live with a household member who has coverage, were traveling in a rideshare vehicle, or were riding in a commercial vehicle. Reviewing every potentially applicable policy can help prevent you from accepting a settlement before the available coverage is understood.
What Damages May an Injured Passenger Claim?
The value of your passenger injury claim depends on the harm caused by the collision and the insurance or other assets legally available to satisfy the claim.
Depending on the circumstances, recoverable damages may include:
- Medical bills and rehabilitation expenses
- Lost wages
- Reduced future earning capacity
- Pain and suffering when Massachusetts requirements are met
- Other reasonable accident-related losses recoverable under Massachusetts law
Serious injuries can also create questions about future medical care, permanent limitations, and the effect of the injury on your ability to work. Those losses should be evaluated using medical, employment, and financial evidence rather than estimates made immediately after the crash.
You can review reported results from Hoey Law here:
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Past results do not predict the outcome of another person’s case.
What Evidence Should a Passenger Preserve?
As a passenger, you may be an important witness because you may have seen or heard what happened immediately before the collision. Record what you actually remember, and avoid guessing about facts you did not observe.
Useful evidence may include:
- Photographs of the vehicles, roadway, traffic controls, and visible injuries
- Police reports and crash exchange information
- Names and contact information for witnesses
- Dash-camera, surveillance, or other video
- Medical records and bills
- Wage and employment documentation
- Insurance correspondence
- Rideshare trip records when applicable
- Receipts for reasonable accident-related expenses
Preserve evidence as early as possible. Vehicles can be repaired, video can be overwritten, and witnesses can become harder to locate. Keep your own copies of important documents rather than relying on an insurer, medical provider, or another driver to retain everything.
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Should a Passenger Give the Insurance Company a Recorded Statement?
Use care before giving a recorded statement. The answer can depend on which insurer is requesting the statement and what duties apply under the relevant policy.
An insurer providing benefits under a policy that covers you may request information or cooperation required by the policy. A liability insurer for another driver has a different relationship with you and may ask detailed questions about the crash, prior medical conditions, symptoms, treatment, and activities after the collision.
Always provide truthful information. Do not guess about facts you do not remember, and do not minimize or exaggerate symptoms. Before signing a broad medical authorization or settlement release, understand what information the document permits the insurer to obtain and which legal rights the release would end.
A settlement release can permanently resolve claims within its terms. Before accepting a settlement, consider whether your medical condition is reasonably understood, whether treatment is continuing, whether lost income may continue, and whether other insurance coverage may apply.
How Long Does a Passenger Have to File a Massachusetts Injury Lawsuit?
Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 260, Section 2A generally requires tort actions, including many personal injury lawsuits, to be filed within three years after the cause of action accrues. Other rules can apply depending on the parties and circumstances.
The three-year period is not a reason to delay investigating a claim. Evidence may disappear long before a lawsuit deadline expires. Claims involving public entities, government vehicles, roadway defects, unidentified drivers, or other unusual facts can involve separate notice requirements or procedures.
For example, Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 260, Section 4B imposes a 30-day written notice requirement to police and the Registry of Motor Vehicles for certain actions involving a motor vehicle operator who failed to identify the operator or owner at the time of the incident. The correct deadline and notice requirements should be evaluated from the specific facts of your case.
How Can a Massachusetts Car Accident Attorney Help a Passenger?
If you were not driving, one of your first questions may be who is responsible for paying for your injuries.
A Massachusetts car accident attorney can help by:
- Investigating how the collision occurred
- Identifying potentially responsible drivers and other parties
- Reviewing PIP, bodily injury, uninsured motorist, underinsured motorist, MedPay, rideshare, and commercial coverage
- Preserving photographs, video, vehicle evidence, and witness information
- Organizing medical records, bills, and wage-loss documentation
- Communicating with insurers
- Reviewing settlement offers, releases, and medical authorizations
- Evaluating damages using medical and financial evidence
- Preparing a lawsuit when the facts and law support one
The purpose of a passenger claim is to determine which legal rights and insurance benefits apply after an injury. When the driver is a friend or relative, reviewing insurance coverage can help separate the personal relationship from the legal and financial issues created by the crash.
Learn more about Attorney David J. Hoey:
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Speak With a Massachusetts Car Accident Attorney About Your Passenger Injury Claim
If you were injured while riding as a passenger in a Massachusetts car accident, Hoey Law can review how the crash happened, identify potentially applicable insurance policies, and explain what evidence may help support your claim.
Hoey Law represents injured people and families throughout Massachusetts from its North Reading office. Attorney David J. Hoey has handled complex civil litigation and catastrophic injury matters since 1997.
Call Hoey Law at 978-662-8868:
tel:+19786628868
Request a consultation:
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This article is for general informational purposes only. It is not legal advice, does not create an attorney-client relationship, and should not replace advice from an attorney about your specific situation.
