Not at fault for the crash, but you drove away too

Attorney Answer

"How liable would I be" is really two questions, and they have different answers. For the collision itself, a driver who ran a red light is the one with the problem. For leaving, being right about the crash does not help you: New York's duty to stop does not depend on who was at fault.

Vehicle and Traffic Law § 600(1)(a) sets the duty:

Any person operating a motor vehicle who, knowing or having cause to know that damage has been caused to the real property or to the personal property, not including animals, of another, due to an incident involving the motor vehicle operated by such person shall, before leaving the place where the damage occurred, stop, exhibit his or her license and insurance identification card for such vehicle, when such card is required pursuant to articles six and eight of this chapter, and give his or her name, residence, including street and number, insurance carrier and insurance identification information including but not limited to the number and effective dates of said individual's insurance policy, and license number to the party sustaining the damage, or in case the person sustaining the damage is not present at the place where the damage occurred then he or she shall report the same as soon as physically able to the nearest police station, or judicial officer.

Notice what that sentence does not say. It applies to "any person operating a motor vehicle" who knows damage was caused — there is no exception for the driver who was not to blame, and none for the driver whose counterpart was leaving too. If the other driver drove off, they were under exactly the same duty, and that does not cancel yours.

Where only property was damaged, the same subdivision fixes the consequence:

A violation of the provisions of paragraph a of this subdivision shall constitute a traffic infraction punishable by a fine of up to two hundred fifty dollars or a sentence of imprisonment for up to fifteen days or both such fine and imprisonment.

The collision is a separate, civil question, and on your account it favors you. New York divides responsibility for the damage itself under CPLR 1411(a):

Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, in any action to recover damages for personal injury, injury to property, or wrongful death, the culpable conduct attributable to the claimant or to the decedent, including contributory negligence or assumption of risk, shall not bar recovery. The amount of damages otherwise recoverable shall be diminished in the proportion which the culpable conduct attributable to the claimant or decedent bears to the culpable conduct which caused the damages.

So fault for the crash turns on how it happened — and a red light is about as clear a fact as a collision offers. Leaving does not move the fault for the crash onto you. What it does is give the other driver a story to tell first, which is why the evidence of the light matters more than it otherwise would.

The realistic way this does not blow over is the other driver reporting that you hit them and left. The answer to that is evidence, gathered properly, and a report made the right way.

What you can do

1. Talk to a New York lawyer today about the report Vehicle and Traffic Law § 600(1)(a) requires — how to make it, when, and whether the lawyer should make the first contact. A late report is still a statement about your own conduct, and the way it is made matters.

2. Ask the lawyer about securing any traffic-camera footage of the intersection. It is often overwritten quickly, and it is the best proof of who ran the light.

3. Keep what already exists: photographs of your front end, any dash-camera footage, and anything showing when and where you were.

4. Do not describe what happened to anyone else in the meantime — not in a message, not on social media, and not to an insurer's adjuster on a recorded line.

5. Ask the lawyer how and when to notify your own insurer. Policies require prompt notice, and the notice is itself an account of what happened.

⏱ Time limits apply. Vehicle and Traffic Law § 600(1)(a) requires a report "as soon as physically able" where the other party is not present, so the date of the collision is the starting point for everything. Any claim over the damage, by either driver, generally runs three years under CPLR 214. What applies to you depends on facts a page cannot see; bring the date to a New York attorney now.

A New York attorney can look at the specifics quickly, and most offer a short first conversation at no cost. A few minutes on your actual facts is worth more than any general guidance, this page included.