Car Accident Legal Terms Glossary
Last reviewed June 2026
Quick answer. The terms that decide a car accident claim, defined plainly: no-fault and at-fault systems, PIP, serious injury and verbal thresholds, pure and modified comparative negligence, uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, and the three rideshare coverage periods.
Car accident claims turn on a handful of legal terms that insurers use fluently and most people have never heard. Here is what each one means in plain language.
No-fault insurance. A system where your own Personal Injury Protection pays your medical bills and lost wages after a crash regardless of fault, in exchange for a limited right to sue for pain and suffering. Massachusetts, New York, and New Jersey are no-fault states.
At-fault (tort) system. A system where the driver who caused the crash, through their insurer, is responsible for the damages, with no threshold to clear before suing.
Personal Injury Protection (PIP). No-fault coverage that pays medical bills and lost wages regardless of fault, up to a set limit, such as 8,000 dollars in Massachusetts or 50,000 dollars in New York.
Serious injury threshold. The bar an injury must clear in a no-fault state before you can sue for pain and suffering. New York defines nine categories in Insurance Law section 5102(d).
Verbal threshold. New Jersey’s Limitation on Lawsuit option under N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8, which bars pain-and-suffering claims unless the injury fits one of six statutory categories.
Pure comparative negligence. A fault rule allowing recovery even if you are mostly at fault, reduced by your percentage of fault. Used in New York and Rhode Island.
Modified comparative negligence. A fault rule allowing recovery only if your fault stays at or below a set limit, usually 50 percent, reduced by your share. Used in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, and New Jersey.
Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage. Coverage from your own policy that pays for your injuries when the at-fault driver has no insurance or flees the scene.
Underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage. Coverage from your own policy that pays the gap when the at-fault driver has insurance but not enough to cover your damages.
The three rideshare coverage periods. App off (personal policy only), app on but waiting (contingent coverage), and ride accepted or passenger aboard (up to 1 million dollars, or 1.25 million in New York).
Deemer statute. A New Jersey law (N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.4) that can apply New Jersey PIP and the verbal threshold to an out-of-state policyholder whose insurer does business in New Jersey while their vehicle is used in the state.
Statute of limitations. The fixed window to file a lawsuit, running from the crash date. It ranges from 2 years (Connecticut, New Jersey) to 6 years (Maine) in the Northeast.
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Related Guides
- No-fault vs at-fault states
- Serious injury and verbal thresholds
- Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage
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