When someone dies in a crash on a Western New York road, the family is left with grief, funeral arrangements and, often, sudden financial strain. New York’s wrongful death law is narrower than many families expect. It’s worth understanding the basics early, because the deadline is shorter than for an ordinary injury claim.
Who can bring the claim?
Under New York’s Estates, Powers and Trusts Law 5-4.1, only the personal representative of the estate, whether that’s the executor a will names or an administrator the court picks, can bring a wrongful death action. In Buffalo, that appointment is made by the Erie County Surrogate’s Court. The money recovered goes to the person’s distributees, generally the spouse, children or other close relatives who would inherit under state law, in proportion to their financial loss.
Getting appointed can take weeks or months. Start that process early.
How long do families have?
Two years from the date of death. If the at-fault driver is prosecuted, the representative gets at least one year from the end of the criminal case. Claims against a city, county or the NFTA also require a notice of claim within 90 days, which in a death case runs from the appointment of the representative. See our deadline guide.
What damages are available?
New York’s statute, EPTL 5-4.3, allows “fair and just compensation for the pecuniary injuries” resulting from the death. That focuses on losses with a dollar value.
- The income and support the family lost.
- The value of services they would have provided, like childcare and household work.
- Loss of parental guidance for children, which New York treats as a financial loss.
- Medical and funeral expenses paid by the family or estate.
Grief, sorrow and loss of companionship aren’t compensable under current New York law.
What about the Grieving Families Act?
The Legislature has passed bills several times that would allow damages for grief and loss of companionship and extend the deadline to three years. Each has been vetoed, most recently on December 5, 2025, and the 2026 version didn’t advance. Until a bill becomes law, the existing two-year, financial-loss rules control. Don’t wait on a change that may not come.
What’s a survival claim?
A separate claim, brought by the estate under EPTL 11-3.2, covers what the person suffered before death. That includes conscious pain and suffering between the crash and death, and medical bills and lost earnings during that time. Survival and wrongful death claims are usually filed together.
Does the serious injury threshold apply?
Death is one of the defined serious injuries under Insurance Law 5102(d), so the threshold is met. The 2026 $100,000 cap on non-economic damages for certain at-fault drivers doesn’t apply in death cases.
What about fault?
If the person who died was partly to blame, damages can be reduced. For no-fault crash cases filed on or after May 26, 2026, a share of fault greater than the defendants’ combined share can block recovery under the new CPLR 1411(b). See the reform guide.
How much insurance is there?
New York’s minimum liability limits for death are $50,000 for one person and $100,000 per accident, per the DMV’s insurance requirements page. Many drivers carry more. Supplementary uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage on the family’s own policy may add to what’s available. No-fault also includes a death benefit.
Help with costs
If the death resulted from a crime, like a drunk-driving crash, the state’s Office of Victim Services may help with funeral costs and other expenses. Since December 31, 2025, families have three years to apply, and a police report is no longer required for eligibility.
The short version
- Only the estate’s personal representative can sue for wrongful death.
- The deadline is two years from death.
- Damages cover financial losses, not grief.
- A separate survival claim covers the person’s own pain before death.
Compensation benefits, and the first reports families still have to make
A change effective December 31, 2025 generally gives families three years to apply to the Office of Victim Services and no longer requires a police report. That program is not a substitute for the wrongful death lawsuit, which still has its own two-year period in most cases, counted from the death, and it is not a substitute for a 90-day notice of claim if a public defendant is involved.
Someone still needs to file an MV-104 within 10 days if the crash caused a death, and to request the police report. The DMV order page lists current copy fees and says reports stay in the system for four years.
Minimum liability coverage on a private New York vehicle is $50,000 for a death of one person and $100,000 for deaths in one crash, plus $10,000 for property damage, per the DMV insurance-requirements page. Funeral costs and lost support can exceed those figures, which is why SUM coverage, a public-defendant claim, or a later claim against another responsible company may all need to be considered early.
If a Metro bus or a city vehicle was involved, add the 90-day notice or NFTA presentment to the family’s first checklist, because those dates can run out while probate is still being organized. Our notice of claim guide covers the city and county path.
Write down the names of everyone at the scene, including passengers, and ask for the police report number the same week. Those details are harder to collect after a funeral, and they often decide who must be named in a later complaint.
We’re sorry for your loss. You can browse wrongful death attorneys around Buffalo.