Car Accidents
Who’s Really at Fault in a Long Island Crash?
Clients often call my office after left turn accidents. A car cuts across traffic, causing a hard hit, and now questions arise about who is responsible. These are some of the most violent collisions we deal with as a personal injury law firm. I have seen them on residential side streets and on some of our busiest roadways like Middle Country Road in Suffolk County, Jericho Turnpike stretching through western Suffolk into Nassau, and Route 110 in Melville where traffic moves fast and drivers sometimes become impatient and take chances.
Clients come into my office all the time looking for an answer to the same question. Who is at fault? The short answer is usually the driver making the left. But like most things in personal injury law, there are nuances and the full answer takes some explaining. Let me walk you through how these cases actually work from a liability and damages standpoint, based on what I see every day handling Long Island car accident claims.
According to NHTSA data, left turns account for 22% of all crashes nationwide and are the critical pre-crash event in 22% of intersection accidents. When crashes involve vehicles crossing each other’s path, left turns are a factor in 53% of those collisions.
Left turn crashes are not all the same. The facts matter, and the setup of the accident can change how we analyze a case.
The most common scenario is two vehicles traveling in opposite directions on the same road. One driver attempts to turn left across traffic and gets struck by a vehicle going straight. This is the classic left turn case.
But there are other variations I see often:
What all of these situations have in common is exposure. When a person turns left, they are crossing into the path of oncoming traffic. That puts their vehicle in a vulnerable position. The angle of impact is often perpendicular or close to it, which means less protection from the structure of the car and a greater chance of serious injury. The straight driving vehicle is also usually subjected to an extreme impact.
On faster roads like Middle Country Road or Jericho Turnpike, the consequences are even worse. Higher speeds mean less time to react and more force at impact. That is why these cases often involve significant injuries, especially to the neck, back, and shoulders.
Liability in left turn cases is grounded in New York law, specifically the New York Vehicle and Traffic Law.
Under New York Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1141, a driver attempting to turn left must yield the right of way to any oncoming vehicle that is close enough to constitute an immediate hazard.
That rule is straightforward. The vehicle going straight has the right of way. The turning vehicle must wait until it is safe.
There is one important exception. If there is a traffic control device, such as a protected green arrow, that changes the analysis. In that situation, the turning driver may have the right of way.
Outside of that, the failure to yield is the foundation of liability in these cases. When I evaluate a left turn accident, the first question I ask myself is simple. Who had the right of way?
In my experience, liability in these cases is often clear. The driver making the left turn is usually responsible because they had the duty to yield.
Think about it practically. The driver going straight is entitled to continue in their lane. They are not expecting someone to cut across their path. The turning driver, on the other hand, is making an active decision to cross traffic. That decision comes with responsibility.
Most of the time, when a left turn collision happens, it is because the turning driver:
When those decisions go wrong, the law places the blame where it belongs.
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Zone A
Front Strike
100% Fault on Turning Driver 
The front of the turning vehicle strikes the side of the oncoming car. This shows the turn was initiated before it was safe. The turning driver clearly failed to yield.
Strongest Liability Position
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Zone B
Mid-Body Strike
90/10 Split With Defense Argument
Impact to the center of the straight-moving vehicle. Turning driver still primarily at fault, but defense may use this to argue the straight driver had room to react.
Fault Favors Straight Driver
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Zone C
Rear Strike
80/20 Fault Shifts More to Straight Driver
Impact to the rear of the straight-moving vehicle suggests the turning car had nearly completed the turn and cleared the lane. Defense argues the straight driver had time to stop.
Most Favorable for Turning Driver
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If you handle enough of these cases, you start to see the same defenses over and over. The most common one is speeding.
The turning driver will claim that the vehicle going straight was traveling too fast, and that is why the accident happened.
On paper, that sounds like a strong argument. In reality, it is usually difficult to prove.
To make a credible speeding argument, you need evidence. That could be:
Without that kind of proof, the claim of speeding is often just speculation.
Even when there is some evidence of speed, it usually does not eliminate liability for the turning driver. At most, it can reduce the percentage of fault assigned to the other driver. That brings us to an important concept in New York law.
New York follows a pure comparative fault system. That means more than one party can be at fault for an accident.
If a jury finds that both drivers contributed to the crash, they will assign percentages of fault. For example:
Even if the driver going straight is partially at fault, they can still recover damages. Their recovery is simply reduced by their percentage of fault.
In left turn cases, I usually see the turning driver carry all or the majority of the blame. It takes strong evidence to shift that balance in a meaningful way.
Even if you share some percentage of fault, you can still recover damages — your award is simply reduced by your share. A 20% finding against you does not eliminate your claim.
One of the most important pieces of evidence in these cases is the point of impact on the vehicles.
If the front of the straight-moving vehicle strikes the side of the turning vehicle, that supports the argument that the turning driver failed to yield.
But if the impact is to the rear portion of the turning vehicle, the analysis can change a bit. That may indicate that the turning vehicle had almost completed the turn and cleared the lane.
In those situations, the defense may argue that the straight-moving vehicle had time to avoid the collision but did not. That can shift some percentage of fault.
I have handled cases where this kind of evidence moved liability from 100 percent against the turning driver to something like 90/10 or 80/20. It does not flip the case entirely, but it matters.
In many types of car accident cases, we pursue summary judgment early. That is a motion asking the court to decide liability as a matter of law, without the need for a trial.
Winning summary judgment has real advantages:
But left turn cases are tricky.
Because of the potential for comparative fault, especially with allegations of speeding or questions about the point of impact, courts are often reluctant to grant summary judgment.
What that means in practice is delay. You file the motion, you wait for briefs to be filed, and then you wait for the court to issue a decision. That process can take months. If the motion is denied, you are right back where you started, but with a significant delay in the case.
In my practice, I am selective about when I move for summary judgment in a left turn case. If there is no credible claim of speeding and the physical evidence clearly supports our position, it may be worth it. Otherwise, I would rather keep the case moving toward resolution.
One of the biggest mistakes I see attorneys make is focusing only on fault.
Yes, liability is important. But every personal injury case has two parts:
You need both to win.
Even if liability is strong, the case still needs to meet New York’s serious injury threshold to recover for pain and suffering. That is part of the no-fault system we have in this state.
Under New York law, you cannot recover for pain and suffering unless your injuries qualify as “serious” within the meaning of the statute. That can include things like:
At the same time, no-fault benefits, also known as Personal Injury Protection, cover medical bills and lost wages up to certain limits regardless of fault. There is the tradeoff. Everyone gets medical and lost wage protection. In return, we can only pursue compensation if the injury is serious.
That means from day one, we need to b working on both sides of the case. We are building liability through evidence like police reports, photos, and witness statements. At the same time, we are building the damages case through medical records, treatment history, and expert reports.
As an attorney you cannot afford to relax just because liability looks strong. Insurance companies are always looking for weaknesses on the damages side of a case.
Left turn accidents might seem straightforward, but they are always contested. The defense will look for any angle to shift the percentages of fault or minimize the injuries.
That is why we approach every case as if it is going to trial from the beginning.
That means:
When a case is built the right way, it puts pressure on the insurance company. They know when a case is ready to be tried, and that changes how they evaluate it and it gives you leverage at the negotiating table because the carrier knows if they don’t make a fair offer the case is ready for trial.
| 1 | Damage Location on Both Vehicles
We obtain photos of every panel, bumper, and contact zone. The position of the crush damage is physical evidence that cannot be argued away. |
| 2 | Final Resting Position of the Vehicles
Where the cars came to rest after impact tells us the direction and force of the collision — critical for reconstruction. |
| 3 | Skid Marks and Road Debris
Tire marks establish braking distance and speed. Debris fields show where the impact occurred within the lane — not just where the cars stopped. |
| 4 | Traffic Controls and Sight Lines
A protected green arrow changes everything. We document every signal, sign, and obstruction that affected what each driver could see and when. |
Yes. New York follows a pure comparative fault system, which means you can recover damages even if you were partially at fault. If a jury finds you were 20 percent responsible due to speed, your recovery is reduced by that amount. The turning driver's failure to yield does not disappear just because the other side raises a speeding argument. That argument needs evidence to stick.
The most common injuries I see are soft tissue injuries to the neck, back, and shoulders, along with herniated discs, torn ligaments, and in serious cases, fractures or traumatic brain injuries. The angle of impact in a left turn collision is often side-on, which means the vehicle structure provides less protection. On high-speed roads like Middle Country Road or Route 110, the forces involved are significantly greater.
Yes. New York's no-fault system, also called Personal Injury Protection, covers your medical bills and a portion of lost wages up to the policy limits regardless of who caused the accident. It applies to both drivers. However, no-fault does not cover pain and suffering. To recover for that, your injuries must meet the serious injury threshold under New York Insurance Law.
In most car accident cases in New York, the statute of limitations is three years from the date of the accident. However, there are important exceptions. No-fault claims must be filed within 30 days of the accident. If a government vehicle or municipality is involved, a notice of claim may be required within 90 days. Missing these deadlines can cost you your right to recover. Do not wait to speak with an attorney.
Call 911, get medical attention even if you feel ok, and photograph the vehicles, road conditions, and any visible injuries. Get the other driver's insurance information and ask witnesses for their contact details. Do not give a recorded statement to any insurance company before speaking with an attorney. Evidence disappears quickly after a crash, and the steps you take in the first 24 hours can significantly affect your case.
Left hand turn accidents are some of the most dangerous crashes we see on Long Island. They happen in a split second, but the consequences can last a lifetime.
In most cases, the driver making the left turn is at fault because they failed to yield the right of way. But there are nuances. Speed, point of impact, and other factors can influence how liability is divided.
At the same time, proving fault is only half the battle. You also need to prove your injuries meet the legal threshold and justify the compensation you are seeking.
If there is one takeaway, it is this. Do not assume your case is simple just because the other driver turned left. These cases require careful analysis, strong evidence, and a strategy that accounts for both liability and damages from the start.
That is how you put yourself in the best position to recover what you are entitled to under the law.
The information provided in this blog is for general informational purposes only and reflects the opinions of the author. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different, and results depend on the specific facts and applicable law. You should not act or rely on any information in this blog without first seeking advice from a qualified attorney regarding your individual situation.
