Plymouth Car Accident Lawyer
After a crash on Route 3, Samoset Street, or a Plymouth back road, a Massachusetts car accident claim may not work the way you expect. PIP pays first no matter who caused the crash, pain and suffering usually depends on reaching $2,000 in medical expenses, and being found more than half at fault ends the claim.
Jon Olsson has been licensed in Massachusetts since 2017 and represents drivers, passengers, and pedestrians hurt in Plymouth crashes. The consultation is free, and there is no attorney’s fee unless you recover compensation. Request a free case review.
Key facts about Plymouth car accident claims
- Deadline to sue: generally three years from the crash (G.L. c. 260, § 2A).
- PIP: up to $8,000 for medical expenses, up to 75% of lost wages, and replacement services, regardless of fault.
- Pain and suffering: generally requires more than $2,000 in reasonable medical expenses, unless the crash caused a fracture, permanent and serious disfigurement, or another listed injury (G.L. c. 231, § 6D).
- Partial fault: recovery is reduced by your share of fault and barred at 51% or more (G.L. c. 231, § 85).
- Crash report: due within five days if anyone was hurt or a vehicle had more than $1,000 in damage.
Why Jon’s defense experience helps after a Plymouth crash
Jon spent the early part of his career on the other side of injury cases, so he knows how insurers and their lawyers will size up your claim. Before founding Olsson Law, he spent six years at a leading international law firm in Massachusetts, defending major corporations in complex, high-stakes litigation, including serious injury and product liability matters. He then joined a Los Angeles personal injury firm, where he represented injured people in motor vehicle collisions, dangerous property conditions, public entity cases, and disputed liability matters. That background tells him what evidence moves a defense lawyer, and what they look for to justify paying less.
Jon stays directly involved from your first consultation through the resolution of your case, and works to reduce medical bills and liens so more of any settlement goes to you.
- Education: Georgetown University Law Center
- Bar admissions: Massachusetts, California, and Texas
Prior results
- $3.85 million: wrongful death settlement
- $700,000: car accident, back and neck injuries
- $400,000: slip and fall, knee injury
These results include matters personally handled by Jon Olsson at prior law firms and matters in which he participated as part of a legal team. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Read more about Jon Olsson, our approach, and prior results.
Where serious Plymouth crashes happen
Plymouth’s main routes are Route 3, which runs through town as the Pilgrims Highway with six exits, Route 3A through Plymouth Center, and U.S. Route 44, which ends in town. In the Old Colony Planning Council’s 2025 safety plan, which uses MassDOT data from 2018 through 2022, Plymouth recorded 117 crashes that killed or seriously injured someone, behind only Brockton in the region. The plan’s highest-ranked Plymouth corridor is Samoset Street between Marc Drive and Court Street, with 109 injury crashes over that period. For what to do after a crash on the highway itself, including who investigates and how state road defect claims work, see our guide to Route 3 accidents between Quincy and the Sagamore Bridge.
For courthouses, town claims, and other local details, see our Plymouth personal injury page.
How PIP works after a Plymouth car accident
Massachusetts is a no-fault state for the first $8,000. PIP pays reasonable medical expenses, up to 75% of lost wages, and replacement services, whoever caused the crash. It covers you, anyone you let drive your car, people in your household, passengers in your vehicle, and pedestrians.
Notify the insurer and submit the PIP claim as soon as you can after the crash (G.L. c. 90, § 34M). PIP is the first layer, not the whole claim: once your losses go beyond it, the claim moves to the at-fault driver’s insurance.
When can you recover for pain and suffering?
This is a big difference from California, which has no such threshold. In a Massachusetts motor vehicle case, you can recover damages for pain and suffering only if one of these applies (G.L. c. 231, § 6D):
- Your reasonable and necessary medical expenses are more than $2,000
- The injury caused death or the loss of a body member
- The injury caused permanent and serious disfigurement
- The injury caused loss of sight or hearing as the statute defines it
- The injury is a fracture
That’s why gaps in treatment can hurt a crash claim. If you stop seeing a doctor early, an insurer may argue your injury didn’t reach the threshold.
What if the insurer says you were partly at fault?
Massachusetts follows a 51% bar. Your damages are cut by your percentage of fault, and you recover nothing if your negligence is greater than the combined negligence of the people you’re suing (G.L. c. 231, § 85). So a driver found 40% at fault recovers 60% of their damages, but a driver found 51% at fault recovers nothing. The same section presumes you were careful, so the other side has to prove your share.
That’s a sharp contrast with California, where even a driver who was mostly at fault can recover something. In Massachusetts, the fight over fault can decide whether you recover at all.
What if the other driver’s insurance isn’t enough?
Massachusetts drivers must carry only $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident in bodily injury coverage, minimums that took effect July 1, 2025. Other sources may help:
- Uninsured motorist coverage: required on every Massachusetts policy, at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident, for injuries caused by an uninsured or unidentified (“hit and run”) driver
- Underinsured motorist coverage: optional. It helps when the at-fault driver’s limits aren’t high enough, and whatever you collect from their bodily injury coverage is subtracted from your underinsured limit
- Medical payments coverage: optional, at least $5,000, for medical and funeral expenses
- Commercial policies: when the at-fault driver was working, the employer’s insurance may apply
- Rideshare coverage: $1,000,000 from the time an Uber or Lyft driver accepts a request until the trip ends
What to do after a car accident in Plymouth
- Call 911 if anyone is hurt, and get checked by a doctor the same day even if you feel fine.
- Call the police so the crash is documented. On Route 3, the responding agency may be the Massachusetts State Police.
- Photograph the vehicles, the road, any skid marks or debris, and your injuries. Get the other driver’s license, plate, and insurance information, and witnesses’ names and phone numbers.
- Send the Motor Vehicle Crash Operator Report within five days to the RMV, the police department where the crash happened, and your insurer, if anyone was hurt or damage to any one vehicle or property was over $1,000.
- Open your PIP claim with your own insurer.
- Keep every bill, receipt, and pay stub, since those records show whether you’ve passed the $2,000 threshold and how much work you missed.
- Don’t give the other driver’s insurer a recorded statement or sign a release before getting advice.
How to get a copy of a Plymouth crash report
The RMV keeps police crash reports. If you were involved, you can request a copy through the myRMV Online Service Center, or by mail if you have an out-of-state license. The fee is $20 per report, and the RMV says to wait at least four weeks after the crash before requesting it.
How a Plymouth car accident case works
- Free consultation. Jon reviews what happened and tells you honestly whether he can help.
- PIP and investigation. We help get your PIP benefits flowing while gathering the crash report, photos, video, and witness statements.
- Treatment. You focus on recovering while we track your medical care and costs.
- Demand. Once your condition is stable, we send the at-fault driver’s insurer a demand documenting your full losses.
- Negotiation. Many claims settle at this stage.
- Lawsuit, if needed. Smaller cases are filed in Plymouth District Court and larger ones in Plymouth County Superior Court. Both sit at 52 Obery Street.
Plymouth car accident FAQs
How long do I have to sue after a car accident in Massachusetts?
Generally three years from the crash (G.L. c. 260, § 2A). If a defect in a town or state road played a part, notice of that claim is due much sooner, generally within 30 days (G.L. c. 84, § 18).
Can I sue for pain and suffering after a minor crash?
Only if you clear the threshold: more than $2,000 in reasonable medical expenses, or a fracture, permanent and serious disfigurement, or another serious injury listed in the statute.
The driver who hit me drove off. What now?
Report it to the police right away. Your own uninsured motorist coverage, which every Massachusetts policy includes, covers injuries caused by an unidentified “hit and run” driver.
I was hit by a commercial truck on Route 3. Is that different?
Often. The trucking company may be responsible along with the driver and may carry its own policy. Ask early for the driver’s records and any dash camera or tracking data to be preserved.
How much does a car accident lawyer cost?
Nothing up front. Our fee is a percentage of what we recover, and you owe no attorney’s fee if there’s no recovery. Massachusetts requires the agreement to be in writing and signed by both of us (Mass. R. Prof. C. 1.5(c)).
Serving Plymouth and nearby towns
Jon represents people hurt in car accidents throughout Plymouth, including Manomet, Cedarville, and North and West Plymouth, and in Kingston, Carver, Duxbury, Wareham, Bourne, and Plympton. For other injury cases, see our Plymouth personal injury page and our Massachusetts personal injury guide.
Talk to a Plymouth car accident lawyer today
The sooner Jon sees your case, the sooner he can lock down the crash report, photos, and witnesses, and the five-day crash report deadline comes fast. Call Jon Olsson at (508) 659-5235 or contact us online for a free case review. There is no fee unless you recover.
This page provides general information about car accident claims in Plymouth, Massachusetts. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Deadlines and rules can change and may depend on the facts of your case.