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Knowledge, experience, and dedication have brought the lawyers of The Epstein Law Firm to the forefront of their profession. From personal injury to civil litigation, they have built a strong record of success in achieving justice for their clients.
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The Epstein Law Firm, P.A. has been successfully representing clients throughout New Jersey since 1973
A rideshare crash is complicated enough when everyone lives in New Jersey. When one driver is from another state — with an out-of-state license, plates, and a policy written under another state’s rules — people understandably worry the claim must be handled somewhere else, under someone else’s law. In most cases, it does not. If the crash happened in New Jersey, the claim usually starts here, follows New Jersey law on the questions that matter most, and uses the same rideshare insurance rules as any other New Jersey rideshare accident.
That said, an out-of-state driver does add real complications. A New Jersey law called the Deemer Statute can change what an out-of-state policy is treated as providing, the other driver’s insurer may be based across the country, and a lawsuit requires formally serving the driver in another state. This page walks through each issue: where the case belongs, which law applies, how the Deemer Statute works, how the rideshare tiers apply, and what to collect before the other driver leaves.
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Start with the most reassuring point. The state where a crash happened has a direct interest in it: its police responded, its traffic laws governed the driving, and its courts hear disputes from collisions on its roads. Whether you were a rideshare passenger, another driver, a pedestrian, or a cyclist, an injury claim from a New Jersey crash is ordinarily a New Jersey claim.
The driver’s home address does not, by itself, move the case: a driver who drove into New Jersey and collided here can generally expect to answer here — a New York driver crossing the George Washington Bridge, a Pennsylvania driver heading home from the shore, or a rideshare driver licensed elsewhere. Our New Jersey rideshare accident lawyers start with the New Jersey crash, the New Jersey insurance rules, and the evidence gathered here.
Two related questions come up in almost every out-of-state case. The first is jurisdiction: can a New Jersey court hear this case at all? When the crash, injuries, and treatment all happened here, the answer is generally yes. New Jersey courts have authority over claims arising from conduct in this state, and a driver who was physically driving here has the connection that supports a lawsuit here. You do not ordinarily have to sue in the driver’s home state.
The second question is choice of law: which state’s rules decide the claim? In general terms, New Jersey law governs the crash itself — fault, negligence, and what an injured person must prove — because the driving and injury happened here. Coverage can differ slightly: a policy is a contract, and how to read it is sometimes analyzed under the law of the state where it was issued. Courts sort that out case by case, and often it does not change the outcome, because New Jersey statutes set the coverage floor for vehicles used here.
Fault is a separate question from where anyone lives: sorting out who is really responsible in a New Jersey rideshare accident follows the facts of the crash, not the plates.
New Jersey’s Deemer Statute, N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.4, is the law most likely to surprise an out-of-state driver. In plain English: if an insurer is authorized to transact automobile insurance in New Jersey — or is controlled by, controls, or is under common control with a company that is — and it sells an auto policy in another state, that policy must include coverage satisfying at least New Jersey’s required liability insurance, uninsured motorist coverage, and personal injury protection (PIP) whenever the insured vehicle is used or operated in New Jersey. The policy is read — “deemed” — as providing that coverage, even if the policy as written says something different.
That can be a genuine benefit. Some states have no no-fault PIP at all, or require far less; without the statute, an out-of-state policy could leave a gap in the medical-benefits coverage New Jersey expects after a crash here. With it, the policy is treated as carrying at least the New Jersey-required coverage, including PIP under N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4. That is why the first investigation is the other driver’s insurer: whether it (or an affiliate) is authorized in New Jersey determines whether the statute applies at all. If not, the claim proceeds on the policy as written plus any other coverage.
The statute has a second edge, stated precisely: a policy subject to it is construed as providing the required coverage, and the named insured — and any immediate family member, as defined in the related statute — under that policy is subject to the limitation-on-lawsuit option in N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8, subsection a. In other words, the out-of-state insured who receives deemed New Jersey coverage is also treated as having the “verbal threshold” for their own claims for noneconomic loss, such as pain and suffering, from a crash here — even if the home-state policy would have allowed suit more freely.
One caution: the statute sets a floor — it does not rewrite every term, and higher limits the driver bought remain in place.
If the out-of-state driver was working on a rideshare app — or you were in a rideshare vehicle hit by an out-of-state driver — New Jersey’s Transportation Network Company Safety and Regulatory Act, N.J.S.A. 39:5H-1 et seq., supplies the framework, and it turns on app status, not home state. The tiers under N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10 work as follows.
App on, no trip yet. When the driver is logged on and available for a request, but not yet providing a prearranged ride, the driver, the company, or both must maintain primary liability insurance of at least $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for death or bodily injury, and $25,000 for property damage; primary PIP benefits as selected under N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4; and UM/UIM coverage as required by N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.1.
Trip accepted or passenger on board. When the driver is providing a prearranged ride, coverage rises sharply: primary liability of at least $1,500,000 for death, bodily injury, and property damage; primary medical payments of at least $10,000 per person per incident, for the rideshare driver’s benefit only; and UM/UIM of at least $1,500,000. If the driver’s coverage has lapsed or falls short, the company’s insurance must provide the required coverage from the first dollar, with a duty to defend.
App off. When the driver is not logged on, the tiers do not apply and the driver’s personal policy is the coverage to look to — bearing in mind that personal policies commonly exclude commercial or livery use, which is why app status at the moment of the crash matters so much. Drivers should also read our guide for people injured while driving for a rideshare service in New Jersey. None of these tiers changes because the driver lives elsewhere: a driver carrying passengers in New Jersey works under New Jersey’s rideshare insurance law while doing so.
New Jersey is a no-fault state for medical bills, so the first source of payment is usually personal injury protection, not the at-fault driver’s liability policy. For a New Jersey resident, that is typically your own auto policy’s PIP — or a resident relative’s — even if you were a passenger in someone else’s vehicle. PIP under a standard policy provides medical benefits up to $250,000, subject to the policy’s selections, deductibles, and fee schedules.
The out-of-state pieces fit around that structure. If you are the out-of-state insured, the Deemer Statute may deem your policy to include New Jersey PIP when your vehicle is used here. If you were a rideshare passenger, note one limit: the $10,000 medical payments coverage required during a prearranged ride is for the driver’s benefit, not the passenger’s — a passenger’s bills ordinarily run through the PIP that applies to the passenger, with liability and UM/UIM addressing the rest. Opening the PIP application with the correct insurer promptly is a first task after treatment.
Out-of-state drivers sometimes carry only their home state’s minimum limits — far less than the cost of a serious injury — and some carry no insurance at all. That does not necessarily end the claim. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage exists for exactly this situation: UM responds when the at-fault driver has no insurance, and UIM when the driver’s liability limits are not enough, subject to the terms and limits of the coverage claimed under.
In a rideshare case, the statute builds this protection in: during a prearranged ride, N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10 requires at least $1,500,000 in UM/UIM coverage — critical when the driver who hit your rideshare vehicle is uninsured or minimally insured. Outside the tiers, your own policy’s UM/UIM is the usual source, and it generally follows you as a passenger or pedestrian too. Our page on uninsured and underinsured motorist accidents in New Jersey explains why your insurer should be notified promptly and why a settlement with the at-fault driver should not be signed before the UIM carrier’s position is known — settling first can damage the UIM claim under many policies.
Expect the UM/UIM carrier to investigate fault and value much like a liability carrier; payment is not automatic. The police report, proof of the other driver’s status, and medical and wage records are what move these claims.
If the claim cannot be resolved with the insurers, a lawsuit may be filed in New Jersey for a New Jersey crash; the driver cannot veto that by living elsewhere. What takes extra work is service of process — formal delivery of the summons and complaint. In general terms, an out-of-state defendant can be served personally there, or through a method New Jersey’s long-arm practice allows, with the method documented for the court. That service is routine for a New Jersey practice, but slower than serving someone nearby.
So do not let the claim drift: the two-year deadline below does not pause while an insurer looks for its insured. Death cases raise additional issues, addressed in our guide to pursuing a wrongful death claim after a rideshare accident in New Jersey. Where fault is shared, N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1 reduces recovery by the injured person’s percentage of fault and bars it only if that fault exceeds the defendants’ combined fault.
Evidence is easier to get in the first hour than the following month — doubly true when the other driver is about to drive home to another state. After calling 911 and getting medical help, collect the following if you safely can:
Then be careful with the follow-up: an out-of-state adjuster may call quickly asking for a recorded statement or offering a fast settlement, and a statement or release given before your injuries and the coverage picture are clear can be hard to undo. If coverage looks thin, that is the moment to have the file reviewed.
Under N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2, an action for injury to the person caused by the wrongful act, neglect, or default of another within this state must generally be commenced within two years after the claim accrues — in a crash case, ordinarily two years from the date of the accident. The other driver’s home state does not extend that period, and neither does the fact that their insurer is slow to respond. Miss the deadline and the claim can be barred, however clear the fault was.
Insurance claims should not wait either: PIP applications, UM/UIM notices, and rideshare reporting have their own timing requirements, and evidence is easiest to preserve early. Treat the two years as an outer limit, not a schedule.
The Epstein Law Firm can review the evidence, insurance issues, and next steps that may matter in your rideshare accidents claim.
The Epstein Law Firm, in Rochelle Park, represents injured people statewide. A free case evaluation can sort out which out-of-state issues are real in your case.
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Selected case results obtained by The Epstein Law Firm include a $10 million settlement, obtained working as local counsel with a Baltimore firm, for a Maryland woman who lost both of her legs after being struck by an NJ Transit bus in Lakewood, New Jersey; a $13.585 million confidential settlement; and a $4.25 million confidential settlement in a wrongful death and survival action arising from a motor vehicle crash. Every case is different, and these results do not guarantee a similar outcome in any other matter.
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Below are answers to common questions about rideshare accidents involving out-of-state drivers in New Jersey. This information is general and not legal advice — contact our office for guidance on your specific situation.
Generally, yes. When the crash, injuries, and treatment all happened in New Jersey, a New Jersey court can ordinarily hear the claim, and you do not usually have to sue in the other driver’s home state. A driver who was driving here has the connection to this state that supports a lawsuit here.
The defendant still has to be formally served, which can take longer than serving a New Jersey resident, and the two-year deadline keeps running — so assess the case early.
Sources: NJ Courts – Civil Division; NJ rideshare accident lawyer
The policy does not stop working at the state line, but New Jersey law may change what it is treated as providing. Under the Deemer Statute, N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.4, an out-of-state policy from an insurer authorized to do auto insurance business in New Jersey — or affiliated with one that is — is deemed to include at least New Jersey’s required liability, UM, and PIP coverage when the vehicle is used here.
If the insurer is not authorized in New Jersey and has no qualifying affiliation, the statute may not apply, and the claim proceeds under the policy as written and any other coverage, such as the rideshare tiers or your own UM/UIM. Identifying the insurer is therefore an early step. The Department of Banking and Insurance is the state regulator for insurer questions.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.4 (New Jersey Legislature); NJ Department of Banking and Insurance – consumer assistance
It is New Jersey’s way of making sure an out-of-state policy measures up while the car is here. If the company that sold the policy elsewhere is also authorized to sell auto insurance in New Jersey (or is affiliated with one that is), New Jersey treats — “deems” — the policy as including at least the liability, UM, and PIP coverage New Jersey requires, whenever the vehicle is used here.
The trade is that the named insured — and immediate family members under that policy — are then subject to New Jersey’s limitation-on-lawsuit option for their own claims. It upgrades the coverage and applies a New Jersey limit at once.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.4 (New Jersey Legislature); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4 (New Jersey Legislature)
It depends on who is claiming, and under what coverage. For the out-of-state insured, the Deemer Statute answers part of it: a named insured — and an immediate family member under the deemed policy — is subject to the limitation-on-lawsuit option in N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8 for their own noneconomic-loss claims, which generally require an injury in a statutory category such as death, dismemberment, significant scarring, a displaced fracture, loss of a fetus, or a permanent injury.
Your position is separate, and in a prearranged-ride case N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10(j) says the limitation shall not be assertable by a transportation network company or its driver, or against a party not receiving PIP benefits in such an action. Whose threshold is in play should be identified before anyone assumes a claim is barred.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8 (New Jersey Legislature); N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10 (New Jersey Legislature)
Usually, personal injury protection pays first. New Jersey is no-fault for medical bills, so a resident’s treatment is ordinarily paid through their own policy’s PIP — or a resident relative’s — regardless of fault, with standard-policy benefits up to $250,000 subject to the policy’s terms. An out-of-state insured may instead have PIP deemed into their policy by the Deemer Statute.
One point is often misunderstood: the medical payments coverage of at least $10,000 required during a prearranged ride under N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10 applies only for the rideshare driver’s benefit. A passenger’s bills normally run through the PIP that applies to the passenger, with liability and UM/UIM addressing losses beyond PIP.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4 (New Jersey Legislature); N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10 (New Jersey Legislature)
That is what UM/UIM coverage is for. UM responds when the at-fault driver has no insurance; UIM when the driver’s limits are too small to pay for the harm — in each case subject to the terms of the coverage claimed under. In a prearranged ride, New Jersey law requires at least $1,500,000 of UM/UIM, which can be decisive when the driver who hit your rideshare vehicle carried little or none.
Outside the tiers, your own policy’s UM/UIM is the usual source. Notify that carrier promptly, keep proof of the other driver’s status, and do not settle with or release the at-fault driver before the UIM carrier’s position is known — settling first can damage the claim under many policies.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10 (New Jersey Legislature); NJ uninsured/underinsured motorist accidents
Generally two years. Under N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2, an action for injury to the person caused by another’s wrongful act, neglect, or default within this state must be commenced within two years after the claim accrues — ordinarily two years from the accident date. The driver’s out-of-state address, and their insurer’s delays, do not extend it.
Shorter practical clocks also apply to PIP applications, UM/UIM notices, and rideshare reporting, and evidence is easier to preserve early. Confirm your deadline rather than assuming it.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2 (New Jersey Legislature); NJ Courts – Civil Division
You are not required to hire any lawyer, but the work here is New Jersey work: the lawsuit is filed in a New Jersey court, and the rideshare tiers and Deemer Statute are New Jersey statutes. A lawyer who practices here can file and serve the case here and deal with the out-of-state insurer on New Jersey terms, without the admission step an out-of-state lawyer would need.
That matters most when the insurer disputes New Jersey coverage or asserts the verbal threshold. A New Jersey lawyer can also tell you early whether the case needs court at all, or whether the coverage makes a negotiated resolution realistic.
Get the identifiers that are hard to chase once the driver leaves: photographs of the other driver’s license, insurance card, and registration; every vehicle’s plates; the insurer’s name and policy number; and witness names and phone numbers. Also photograph the damage, vehicle positions, and road conditions, and note the police report number.
For the rideshare side, screenshot your trip receipt, the driver’s name and photo in the app, the pickup and drop-off points, and the timeline, and report the crash through the app. The policy number allows the Deemer Statute check — whether that insurer is authorized in New Jersey — and lets a claim be opened without delay.
Sources: N.J.S.A. 39:5H-10 (New Jersey Legislature); NJ Department of Banking and Insurance – consumer assistance
The Epstein Law Firm offers a free case evaluation, and personal injury cases are handled on a contingency fee — in the firm’s own words, no fee unless we win. Cost should not stop you from having an out-of-state coverage problem reviewed, especially where the Deemer Statute, the rideshare tiers, or a UM/UIM claim may decide how much coverage is available.
Before signing, ask how the fee is calculated, what costs are separate, and what happens if the case does not succeed. An evaluation can also confirm your deadline and which insurers need notice first.
Sources: NJ rideshare accident lawyer; NJ Courts – Civil Division
Tell The Epstein Law Firm what happened and get clear guidance about your injury claim and legal options.
Related: our New Jersey car accident lawyers · Physical scars aren’t the only ones that are hard to live with · Even the safest passenger car can lose out to an SUV
These excerpts describe experiences with the firm. They are not identified as cases in this practice area and do not predict another outcome.
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