Hill & Moin LLP represents families seeking answers and accountability after preventable deaths throughout Queens. The Queens Wrongful Death Attorneys at Hill & Moin can investigate fatal crashes, construction accidents, unsafe property conditions, medical negligence, and other incidents caused by wrongful conduct. The firm’s lawyers can also explain who may bring a wrongful death action, what compensation New York law permits, and the deadlines families need to know.
A fatal accident can create immediate questions about medical expenses, lost household income, funeral costs, and the future financial security of surviving family members. A wrongful death case provides a legal process for determining responsibility and pursuing qualifying losses when another party’s wrongful act or negligence caused the death.
What Accidents Can Lead to Wrongful Death Claims in Queens?
Queens combines heavily traveled streets and highways with dense residential neighborhoods, industrial areas, commercial districts, airports, and active construction zones.
Fatal accidents can involve:
- Car and truck collisions
- Pedestrian and bicycle crashes
- Motorcycle accidents
- Construction accidents
- Slip and fall accidents
- Brain injury
- Dangerous buildings and properties
- Elevator or escalator incidents
- Defective products
Traffic remains an important local risk. NYC DOT recorded 57 traffic fatalities in Queens during 2025, down 23% from 74 in 2024. Across the five boroughs, 205 people died in traffic crashes during 2025, the lowest annual number recorded since city recordkeeping began in 1910.
A fatal crash on Queens Boulevard, Northern Boulevard, the Van Wyck Expressway, or another major corridor can involve several potential sources of evidence, including surveillance footage, vehicle data, witness accounts, police reports, and roadway information.
When Does New York Law Allow a Wrongful Death Case?
New York Estates, Powers and Trusts Law §5-4.1 allows a wrongful death action when a wrongful act, neglect, or default causes a person’s death and the defendant would have been liable to that person if death had not occurred.
The lawsuit is brought by the personal representative of the deceased person’s estate for the benefit of qualifying distributees.
That means a family member does not necessarily file a wrongful death lawsuit individually simply because they were closely related to the person who died. Estate administration may first be necessary to appoint an appropriate personal representative.
Liability depends on the underlying accident. Potential defendants can include negligent motorists, commercial vehicle companies, property owners, contractors, medical providers, manufacturers, or other parties whose conduct contributed to the death.
Fatal Construction Accidents in Queens
Construction deaths require particularly careful investigation because a single project can involve an owner, developer, general contractor, construction manager, subcontractors, and equipment companies.
Queens had 34 construction-related injuries and three fatalities through October 2025, according to NYC Department of Buildings data. Worker falls were the largest accident category citywide during the same period, accounting for 137 injuries and five fatalities.
One fatal Queens accident occurred on March 3, 2025, at a new 16-story building on 37th Avenue in Downtown Flushing. DOB reported that a worker installing an exterior aluminum wall panel fell from a seventh-floor balcony to the balcony below and later died from his injuries. DOB issued a violation and full stop-work order.
What Legal Options May Families Have After a Construction Death?
Workers’ compensation death benefits may be available to qualifying survivors after a work-related fatality. A separate wrongful death or third-party action may also be possible depending on who was responsible.
New York Labor Law can be particularly important. Section 200 addresses general workplace safety, §240(1) covers certain elevation-related risks, and §241(6) can apply to violations of qualifying Industrial Code requirements during construction, demolition, or excavation.
If your family lost someone in a Queens construction accident, contact Hill & Moin LLP to determine which wrongful death, workers’ compensation, third-party, and Labor Law options should be investigated.
What Compensation Can Be Recovered?
New York’s wrongful death statute permits recovery for qualifying pecuniary injuries, or financial losses, resulting from the death.
| Potential Loss | Examples |
| Lost financial support | Earnings and financial contributions |
| Lost services | Valuable household and family services |
| Medical expenses | Qualifying treatment related to the fatal injury |
| Funeral expenses | Reasonable funeral costs |
| Other economic losses | Financial losses supported by evidence |
EPTL §5-4.3 specifically permits fair and just compensation for pecuniary injuries and qualifying medical, nursing, and funeral expenses. The statute also provides for interest from the date of death and allows punitive damages when they would have been recoverable had the deceased person survived.
Employment records, tax documents, medical bills, and evidence concerning the services the deceased provided to family members can therefore become important.
Wrongful Death and Survival Claims Are Different
A wrongful death claim focuses on legally recoverable losses caused to qualifying survivors by the death.
A survival action addresses certain damages sustained by the deceased person before death. New York EPTL §11-3.3 provides that these claims can be prosecuted alongside a wrongful death claim, with damages separated between the causes of action.
For example, evidence showing that someone remained conscious and experienced pain between a Queens accident and death can become relevant to a survival claim.
What Evidence Should Be Preserved?
A fatal accident requires a careful reconstruction of events because the person who died cannot provide their own account.
Evidence can include:
- Police and incident reports
- Surveillance or traffic-camera footage
- Photographs and video
- Witness statements
- Medical and autopsy records
- Vehicle and electronic data
- Property maintenance records
- Construction contracts and safety documents
- Employment and financial records
Hill & Moin lawyers can investigate not only what occurred but also who controlled the vehicle, property, equipment, or construction activity involved.
How Long Do You Have to File a Queens Wrongful Death Lawsuit?
New York EPTL §5-4.1 generally requires a wrongful death lawsuit to be commenced within two years of the date of death.
Other requirements can create shorter practical deadlines. Claims involving New York City or another public entity can involve special notice procedures. Different deadlines may also govern related survival, medical malpractice, or workers’ compensation matters.
Families should therefore avoid assuming that every claim has two full years before action is necessary.
Don’t wait while surveillance recordings, jobsite evidence, or witness information disappears. Contact Hill & Moin LLP for a confidential review of the circumstances surrounding your loved one’s death.
Frequently Asked Questions About Queens Wrongful Death Claims
Who can file a wrongful death lawsuit in New York?
The deceased person’s duly appointed personal representative brings the wrongful death action for the benefit of eligible distributees.
How long do families have to file?
New York generally imposes a two-year wrongful death limitation period, although other deadlines or exceptions can affect a particular case.
Can a family bring a claim after a fatal Queens car accident?
Potentially. If negligent driving or another legally actionable cause contributed to the death, the personal representative may have grounds for a wrongful death action.
What happens after a fatal construction accident?
Workers’ compensation death benefits may be available, and separate claims against owners, contractors, manufacturers, or other third parties may also exist. New York Labor Law can provide additional protections in qualifying cases.
Is a survival claim the same as wrongful death?
No. A survival claim addresses certain damages suffered by the deceased before death, while wrongful death addresses qualifying losses resulting from the death. Both may sometimes be pursued in the same action.
How is a wrongful death case valued?
There is no predetermined amount. Recoverable damages depend on the financial losses established under New York law, medical and funeral expenses, the decedent’s contributions, and the facts of the case.
Contact Hill & Moin LLP About a Queens Wrongful Death
A wrongful death case involves more than determining how an accident occurred. It requires identifying every potentially responsible party, preserving evidence, documenting the financial consequences to surviving family members, and complying with New York’s procedural deadlines.
Call Hill & Moin LLP today to schedule a confidential, no-obligation consultation with Queens wrongful death attorneys. Your case. Your future. Our priority.