Motorcycle Accident Claims in New Jersey

All riders: no person may operate or ride on a motorcycle without a securely fitted, approved protective helmet with a neck or chin strap and reflectorized on both sides (fully enclosed autocycles and similar enclosed three-wheelers are excluded). The Motor Vehicle Commission may not assess license points for failing to wear a helmet. The statute does not address whether not wearing a helmet affects damages.

New Jersey's marked-lanes statute requires that a vehicle be driven as nearly as practicable entirely within a single lane and not be moved from that lane until the driver has first made sure the move can be made safely, and that vehicles normally use the right-hand lane except when passing or preparing for a left turn. The section read does not mention motorcycles or lane splitting by name. Violating the marked-lanes rule carries a fine of $100 to $300 plus a $50 surcharge.

Modified comparative negligence (51% bar). The injured person's negligence does not bar recovery if it was not greater than the negligence of the defendant (or the combined negligence of the defendants); damages are reduced by the injured person's percentage of negligence.

New Jersey is a no-fault (choice) state. Standard liability minimums for policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2026 are $35,000 per person and $70,000 per accident for bodily injury (they were $25,000/$50,000 from 2023 through 2025), and $25,000 for property damage. A low-cost basic or special policy may be used instead. Standard policies must include personal injury protection (PIP) medical benefits of up to $250,000 per person regardless of fault. Drivers choose a tort option; under the "limitation on lawsuit" option, a person may sue for noneconomic loss only for death, dismemberment, significant disfigurement or scarring, displaced fractures, loss of a fetus, or a permanent injury.

Two years. An action for injury to the person caused by the wrongful act, neglect or default of another must be filed within two years after the cause of action accrues.