The New York subway system is a lifeline of public transit that offers residents and visitors a quick and cost-effective way to get around the city. Like any form of transportation, though, it’s not without risks, and when an incident leaves you injured, you may need a subway accident lawyer in NYC.
At Tucker Lawyers, we’ve seen our fair share of accidents stemming from poorly maintained equipment, faulty operations, hazards particular to the subway setting (gaps between train and platform, for example), and even train crashes. When you’re injured due to someone else’s negligence, you shouldn’t have to pay for it.
Our talented team of qualified and caring legal professionals is committed to helping you fight for the compensation you deserve when you’re injured through no fault of your own.
We handle the legal hurdles and provide needed support so you can devote your efforts to overcoming the challenges of recovery or mourning the loss of a loved one due to a subway accident.
Contact us today at (516) 399-2364 to schedule a free consultation, find out whether you have a case, and discuss the next steps.
Why Choose Tucker Lawyers?
Your Trusted New York Subway Accident Attorneys
At Tucker Lawyers, our goal is to help you get fair compensation to cover your costs and losses following an accident and minimize your stress as much as possible along the way.
With over 30 years of experience negotiating settlements and winning favorable verdicts in cases like yours, we’ve developed an understanding of what you’re going through and the type of support you need.
This is why we offer so much more than legal advice and representation. We know it can be difficult to return to your normal life following an accident, which is why we come to you if you can’t make it to our office. If you’re struggling to find needed medical care during your recovery, we’ll also help you find suitable doctors and specialists.
As New Yorkers ourselves, we are driven to help our fellow residents when tragedy strikes, and we’ve successfully negotiated settlements in cases like yours, securing millions of dollars in compensation for our clients over the years. When you work with Tucker Lawyers, you’ll always get the outstanding and comprehensive service you deserve.
A Compassionate Team that Puts You First
When you suffer an injury or lose a loved one in a subway accident, you might naturally expect the negligent party to cover related expenses and losses. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work out this way. You might face an uphill battle against the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) and insurance providers when you should be focused on healing or grieving your loss.
You need a subway accident lawyer in NYC with the skill and experience to fight institutions and insurance companies on your behalf. The caring team at Tucker Lawyers always puts your best interests first, and we go above and beyond to make your life easier.
Our Process
What can you expect when you hire an attorney from Tucker Lawyers PC? You can count on dedicated representation from a law firm that supports you in every step of the legal process. From the moment you schedule your free consultation until you cash the final check, our lawyers provide skilled, compassionate, and experienced assistance to help you recover from the harm you suffered.
Schedule a Free Consultation with an Experienced Subway Accident Attorney
When it comes to building a strong legal case for our clients, we make the process as simple and streamlined as possible for your convenience and peace of mind. We start by offering a free consultation to determine whether you have a case for compensation.
We strive to maintain clear communication and offer transparency concerning the progress of your case. Our knowledgeable team is always happy to address your questions and concerns. Your comfort, confidence, and satisfaction are important to us, and we go out of our way to earn your trust and ensure a positive experience.
Building Your Case
A subway accident lawyer needs to start investigating your case as soon as possible, because once you file a report the MTA will launch its own investigation. Once we’ve determined that you have a case, we’ll start collecting evidence like incident reports, witness accounts, footage from the accident and, if needed, expert testimony.
It’s always best to contact an experienced subway accident lawyer as soon as possible to avoid common mistakes. Getting involved early gives us our best chance to build a strong case.
Fighting for Fair Compensation
You may face many costs in the wake of an accident that leaves you injured or dealing with the loss of a loved one. We always do our best to negotiate a maximum settlement in a timely manner, but we also prepare to fight in the courtroom setting if insurers are inflexible or simply wasting time.
Whether you’re injured in a vehicle accident or you fall into a gap between the train and the platform, you’ll find that insurers have the resources to drag out your claim with delays and denials until you give up.
Tucker Lawyers is the subway accident law firm that knows every tactic and has a strategy to get your claim moving. Call us today at (516) 399-2364 to learn more about how we can help you fight for the justice and compensation you need to pay your bills and get back to your life.
The Basics of Subway Accident Law
Why You Need an NYC Subway Accident Attorney
While most people have luckily never been involved in a serious car accident, most drivers understand the basics of what happens legally after a car accident. Unfortunately, in New York, only some of this knowledge applies to subway accidents.
The main difference between the two types of accidents is that you can’t meaningfully purchase subway accident insurance. This leads to the obvious question: How do you get compensation for your injuries after an NYC subway accident?
Typically, you will either file an insurance claim with or sue the responsible party. According to New York law, the MTA is required to take reasonable precautions to ensure your safety while you are in the subway. This means that it should regularly . . .
- Clean up spills
- Make repairs
- Keep the subway staffed with police or security guards
- Provide sufficient lighting
- Place warning signs in dangerous areas.
The MTA is liable if you are injured because a broken grate caused you to trip and break your leg. It is equally liable if you are mugged while waiting for a train because the MTA failed to place security guards in that station.
Proving liability is a crucial part of any lawsuit. But proving liability isn’t enough to secure compensation. It is also necessary to prove that you were injured and that the injuries you suffered have value. Demonstrating that you were injured can be straightforward; often, there is little dispute over whether someone was injured.
Instead, the dispute is commonly about how badly a client was injured. Doctors and lawyers for the MTA may try to claim that any injuries were trivial and have almost no value. But we fight against these claims to get you the compensation you need to cover the medical care and losses you suffered after an injury.
Damages
The amount of money you are entitled to after an accident is known as damages. Even if you and the responsible party agree on all other points, there is generally a dispute over damages. The MTA and its insurance company will want to pay as little compensation as possible, while you need money that covers all of your losses and expenses. And there are probably more damages you are entitled to than you realize.
The main type of damages in any subway accident case is economic damages. These represent calculable losses that resulted from your injuries. Common economic losses include:
- Medical bills
- Loss of wages or salary
- Physical, emotional, or occupational therapy
- Assistance services for activities you can no longer perform alone
- Equipment or property modifications required by your injury (e.g. a wheelchair and a ramp added to your home).
Insurance companies know that most claimants don’t understand the law very well and believe that they are only eligible for medical bills. They will often offer a settlement that pays for all the medical bills you have already received while ignoring other categories and future medical bills.
If you accept this, you may be precluded from getting more money in the future. At Tucker Lawyers PC, our subway accident attorneys calculate the true value of your case, accounting for all past expenses and estimating future expenses. And that is only part of the damages that we can fight to get you.
You are also eligible for non-economic damages. These are damages for pain and suffering that resulted from the accident. For example, if your spouse died in a subway accident, non-economic damages would be money paid to you to help make up for the emotional pain you are suffering and the loss of companionship you will experience.
These damages would come in addition to economic damages, which also cover losses like the cost of paying for a funeral. Since there is no precise way to calculate non-economic damages, lawyers look to similar cases and recommend awards based on the outcomes of those cases.
It can take a substantial amount of money to fully recover from a serious subway accident. Whether you need to replace the income of a lost loved one or need hundreds of thousands of dollars for surgery, these are expenses that you should not be forced to pay yourself. Contact our skilled team at (516) 399-2364 to discuss your legal options today.
FAQs About Qualified Subway Accident Lawyers
Whether you’ve been involved in a lawsuit before or not, you’re sure to have plenty of questions when it comes to seeking fair compensation for your injuries or the loss of a loved one.
You might want to start by seeing what other satisfied clients say about us. We’re always happy to address your questions and concerns, starting with a few we encounter most frequently.
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What is the most common type of NYC subway accident case?
Most NYC subway accident cases are premises liability cases. In a premises liability case, the owner of a property that is open to the public — like a subway — is alleged to have failed to adequately protect visitors from harm.
When it comes to premises liability cases In NYC subways, the most common type of harm is from slip and fall injuries, especially in the winter. NYC subways often have metal or tile stairs that get slippery when people walk on them after being outside on a snowy or rainy day. This danger can be mitigated by proper maintenance. If that maintenance doesn’t occur regularly, the MTA is responsible for any injuries people suffer from falls. Another common cause of slip and fall cases is a lack of maintenance on lights. When lights go out and aren’t replaced, people can slip, especially at night.
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What is the statute of limitations to file an NYC subway accident lawsuit?
You have only so much time to file a claim when an accident occurs. In New York, you have three years from the date the accident occurred to file a personal injury lawsuit, and only two years to file a wrongful death claim.
Bringing a lawsuit against state and local entities could entail a significantly shorter window for filing, so it’s wise to contact Tucker Lawyers as soon as possible.
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How long will it take to receive compensation?
As your New York subway accident attorney, we do our best to hasten the process of securing your settlement. However, the amount of time it takes will depend on a variety of factors, including available evidence, the complexity of your case, and whether the insurance company is willing to negotiate or we have to go to trial.
The process could take just a few weeks or several months. If the case goes to trial, it could take even longer.
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How much will a lawsuit cost me out of pocket?
At Tucker Lawyers, we do our best to ease your burden following the trauma of an accident or loss. While some subway accident lawyers may charge a retainer and other fees upfront, we work on contingency, which means you never pay out of pocket for our services. We don’t get paid until we negotiate a settlement or secure a favorable verdict on your behalf.
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Will my case go to trial?
Most likely, your case will not go to trial. However, this doesn’t mean you don’t need a lawyer. The threat that a case will go to trial is the reason that most NYC subway accident cases settle before going to court.
When you hire a subway accident lawyer, you are letting the insurance company know that you are willing to take the case to trial if necessary. This encourages the insurance company to negotiate in good faith and usually results in the case ending in a settlement before a trial even starts.
If you don’t see your question answered here, contact us by phone or live chat to learn more.
Prevalence of NYC Subway Accidents
The New York City subway system is among the largest in the world, serving an estimated 4.5 million passengers daily. It’s also one of the few rapid transit systems that run 24/7, so it should be no surprise that it has its fair share of accidents and injuries.
Between collisions, falls onto the tracks, falls between cars, contact with the electrified third rail, and other accidents, dozens of people die every year in subway accidents. From January through August of 2021, nearly 50 people lost their lives, which doesn’t even include those who were injured.
If you’ve been injured or lost a loved one through the negligence of others, you need a highly-trained and experienced subway accident attorney to go head-to-head with the MTA, their lawyers, and insurance providers. With the help of a dedicated team of personal injury lawyers on your side, you have the best chance to negotiate for the compensation you deserve.
Speak with a Skilled Subway Accident Lawyer in NYC Today
Tucker Lawyers is more than just an established NYC law firm — we’re part of your community, and we strive to help community members in any way we can.
When you need local subway accident lawyers that truly care and have the skill and experience to fight for the settlement you deserve, call us at (516) 399-2364 to get started and take back your life.
Managing Attorney John. J. Tucker, Esq.
John has personally handled thousands of clients who were victims of another’s negligence and fights relentlessly for their rights. John enjoys bringing closure to a client’s matter so that the injured party can move forward with their life. His background enables him to evaluate complex liability related claims and bring resolution to claims in a record time frame. [ Attorney Bio ]