A genuinely major, very recent change
Since 1975, New York has been a pure comparative negligence state under CPLR § 1411 — meaning a claimant's own fault never barred recovery entirely, no matter how high that percentage climbed. That changed as part of New York's 2026 state budget, signed into law on May 27, 2026. A new subsection, CPLR § 1411(b), carves out motor vehicle accident cases governed by Article 51 of the Insurance Law (New York's No-Fault framework) and moves them to a modified comparative fault system with a genuine 51% bar — while every other type of personal injury claim continues under the original pure comparative rule in CPLR § 1411(a).
The new rule for car accidents
Under the new CPLR § 1411(b), a plaintiff found to be more than 50% at fault for a motor vehicle accident now recovers nothing at all — the same kind of hard bar used in roughly 21 other states. Where multiple defendants are involved, the plaintiff's own share must exceed the combined share of all defendants to trigger the bar. This change applies to actions commenced on or after May 26, 2026.
The original rule, still very much alive elsewhere
Outside of motor vehicle accidents, New York's original pure comparative negligence rule continues to apply without modification. A claimant in a slip-and-fall, premises liability, medical malpractice, or assault case can still recover something even if found 90% or more at fault, with damages simply reduced in proportion to their own share.
A real damages cap tied to specific risk categories
Alongside the new 51% bar, a new Insurance Law § 5104(d) caps non-economic damages (pain and suffering) at $100,000 in a motor vehicle case where the injured plaintiff is at fault, not fully barred under the new rule, and falls into a specific risk category — such as operating an uninsured vehicle, or operating while impaired and subsequently convicted. See our full guide to how fault is assigned in New York for more on this.