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Guide · Pedestrians and bikes · All states

Hit by a car while walking: who pays?

Updated By the Counselworthy teamGeneral information, not legal advice

Short answer

Who pays depends on the state.

  • In 12 no-fault states, including New Jersey, each insurer pays its own policyholders' minor injury costs, whoever was at fault.
  • In New Jersey, a household auto policy's PIP covers you on foot.
  • Other pedestrians may be eligible for PIP from the state's Unsatisfied Claim and Judgment Fund.

Checked October 19, 2026.

Sources: Insurance Information Institute, Background on: No-fault auto insurance; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4; N.J.S.A. 39:6-86.7; N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.3. Every fact cites a source

Illustration: a wet crosswalk at dusk with the walk signal lit

NJWho pays your medical bills first

You or a relative you live with has an auto policyYour household's PIP

It covers you when a car hits you on foot, whoever caused it, up to the policy's PIP limit.

No auto policy in your householdThe state fund, maybe

Other pedestrians may be eligible for PIP benefits from New Jersey's Unsatisfied Claim and Judgment Fund.

Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4; N.J.S.A. 39:6-86.7; N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.3; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.3; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-5(g)

NJWhat PIP doesn't cover

The PIP law doesn't limit recovering uncompensated losses from the person at fault: medical bills above your PIP limits, deductibles and copayments through a driver's secondary insurance coverage, and lost income PIP didn't pay.

  1. Lost wages, on a standard policyPIP pays up to $100 a week and $5,200 in all, unless the benefit was dropped.Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4(b), (c), (e); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.3(b); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-10; New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance, Auto Insurance New Jersey Buyer's Guide
  2. Pain and sufferingIf your household's policy has the lawsuit limit, it can apply: a claim needs one of the injuries the law lists, like a displaced fracture or a permanent injury.Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(i); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8.1(b)
  3. Your share of the faultIt cuts what you recover. Above 50%, you recover nothing.Source: N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1; N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.2
Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-12; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(k)

NJThe deadlines

  1. Sue the driver, in generalN.J.S.A. 2A:14-2(a)2 years after the injury
  2. A bus or vehicle of a public entityN.J.S.A. 59:8-8Notice within 90 days
  3. A PIP payment is overdue afterN.J.S.A. 39:6A-5(g)60 days of written notice
Source: N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2(a); N.J.S.A. 59:8-8; N.J.S.A. 59:8-9; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4.3; N.J.S.A. 39:6A-5(g)

NJWhen it's worth asking a lawyer

  1. No one in your household has an auto policyWhether the state fund pays depends on rules worth checking with someone who knows them.Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-4; N.J.S.A. 39:6-86.7; N.J.S.A. 17:28-1.3
  2. A bus or a government vehicle hit youWritten notice of the claim is due within 90 days.Source: N.J.S.A. 59:8-8; N.J.S.A. 59:8-9
  3. Your injury may be permanentWith the lawsuit limit, pain and suffering depends on whether the injury is one the law lists.Source: N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8(a); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-2(i); N.J.S.A. 39:6A-8.1(b)
  4. The driver says you stepped outYour share of the fault cuts what you recover.Source: N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1; N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.2

Sources

General information, not legal advice. We don't know the facts of your claim. A lawyer can review them, and most injury lawyers offer a free consultation.

What to do next

Questions people ask

Who pays if a pedestrian is hit by a car?

It depends on the state. In 12 no-fault states, including New Jersey, each insurer pays its own policyholders' minor injury costs first, whoever was at fault. In New Jersey, a household auto policy's PIP covers you on foot.

Who pays if I'm hit by a car while walking in New Jersey?

If you or a relative you live with has a New Jersey auto policy, its PIP pays your medical bills first, whoever caused it. Other pedestrians may be eligible for PIP from the state's Unsatisfied Claim and Judgment Fund.

Does the driver's insurance pay a pedestrian's medical bills in New Jersey?

PIP usually comes from your own household's policy first. Medical bills above your PIP limits can be claimed from the person at fault.

Can a pedestrian sue the driver in New Jersey?

Yes, generally within 2 years. If your household's policy has the lawsuit limit, pain and suffering needs one of the injuries the law lists.

What if a bus hit me?

Who pays medical bills first can differ: a bus isn't an automobile under the PIP law, and its own policy may carry PIP for people on foot. If a public entity runs it, written notice of the claim is due within 90 days.

More on pedestrians and bikes

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