Leaving the scene of an accident in New Jersey can cost you a fine of a few hundred dollars and a six-month license suspension at the low end, or five to ten years in state prison if someone died. The penalty tier depends almost entirely on one question: was anyone hurt? Property-only cases stay in the traffic code. Injury and fatal cases add felony-level criminal charges on top of the traffic penalties, and prosecutors typically pursue both.
Penalties When Only Property Was Damaged
If no one was injured, the offense falls under N.J.S.A. 39:4-129(b). A first offense carries a fine of $200 to $400, up to 30 days in jail, and a six-month license suspension. A second or later offense raises the fine to $400 to $600, adds a mandatory 30 to 90 days in jail, and suspends your license for a year.1New Jersey Revised Statutes. New Jersey Code 39:4-129 – Action in Case of Accident The court also assesses two motor vehicle points.2NJ.gov. NJ Points Schedule
The 30-day minimum on a repeat offense is a floor. A judge cannot go below it, so a second hit-and-run guarantees jail time even when no one was hurt.
Penalties When Someone Was Injured or Killed
Injury cases are punished twice: once as a traffic offense, and again as a crime.
Traffic Penalties
Under N.J.S.A. 39:4-129(a), a first offense involving injury carries a fine of $2,500 to $5,000, up to 180 days in jail, and a one-year license forfeiture. A second offense results in permanent revocation of driving privileges, with no restricted or work license available.1New Jersey Revised Statutes. New Jersey Code 39:4-129 – Action in Case of Accident Eight motor vehicle points are added to your record.2NJ.gov. NJ Points Schedule
Criminal Charges
Under N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1.1, a driver who knowingly leaves the scene of an accident causing serious bodily injury is guilty of a third-degree crime, punishable by three to five years in state prison.3New Jersey Revised Statutes. New Jersey Code 2C:12-1.1 – Knowingly Leaving Scene of Motor Vehicle Accident Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury, Third Degree Crime4New Jersey Revised Statutes. New Jersey Code 2C:43-6 – Sentence of Imprisonment for Crime The statute strips the ordinary presumption of non-imprisonment that softens most third-degree sentences, so prison is the expected outcome rather than the exception.
If the victim dies, the charge rises to a second-degree crime under N.J.S.A. 2C:11-5.1, punishable by five to ten years in state prison.5New Jersey Courts. Manual on New Jersey Sentencing Law Those criminal sentences stack on top of the traffic-code fines and license loss, not in place of them.
The “Knowingly Involved” Threshold
Drivers who assume they can’t be charged because they didn’t realize they hit anyone are often wrong. The statute requires only that you were “knowingly involved” in an accident, and New Jersey defines that broadly. If the collision produced $250 or more in damage or any injury at all, the law presumes you knew about it. Not realizing someone was hurt is not a defense, so long as you knew a collision of some kind happened.1New Jersey Revised Statutes. New Jersey Code 39:4-129 – Action in Case of Accident
That standard sweeps in the driver who sideswipes a parked car, clips a pedestrian, or feels a thump and keeps going, telling themselves it was nothing. The state does not have to prove you understood how bad it was. Only that you knew something happened.
What the Law Required You to Do
The charge exists because you failed one or more of the obligations set out in N.J.S.A. 39:4-129. Every driver involved in a collision must stop at or near the scene, give their name, address, driver’s license, and registration to the other driver, any injured person, witnesses, and any responding officer, and render reasonable assistance to anyone hurt, including arranging transport to a hospital if the person needs it or asks for it. If you strike an unattended car or other property, you must try to find the owner. If you can’t, you must leave a written note in a visible place identifying yourself and describing what happened.1New Jersey Revised Statutes. New Jersey Code 39:4-129 – Action in Case of Accident
These duties apply no matter who caused the crash and no matter how minor the damage looks.
Insurance, Points, and License Fallout
The sentence is not the end of it. Two points for a property-only conviction, or eight points for an injury conviction, will almost certainly push your auto insurance premiums up at renewal. Once your total reaches six or more points, the Motor Vehicle Commission adds annual surcharges on top of your insurance costs.
A criminal conviction for leaving the scene of an injury or fatal accident sits on your record permanently and shows up on background checks used for jobs, housing, and professional licenses. During the license forfeiture — one year for a first injury offense, permanent for a second — New Jersey does not issue a hardship, conditional, or work-only license. You will need to arrange transportation for work, medical care, and everything else.
If You Already Left
If you drove away from an accident and now realize you were required to stay, contact a New Jersey traffic attorney before contacting police. Coming forward quickly does not erase the offense, but courts and prosecutors weigh it at sentencing. The longer the delay between the accident and your first contact with law enforcement, the harder it becomes to argue you acted in good faith.
If You Were the One Hit
If a driver struck you and fled, the uninsured motorist coverage on your own policy is the usual route to compensation for bodily injury, because New Jersey requires standard policies to include it and it applies to hit-and-run situations. For property damage, a UM claim generally requires that you identify the vehicle that hit you; if it was never found, you would need collision coverage on your own policy to pay for repairs. Drivers who bought only a Basic Policy have no UM coverage at all.6NJ.gov. Filing an Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Claim
If you were physically injured, the New Jersey Victims of Crime Compensation Office lists hit-and-run as a qualifying motor vehicle crime and can pay awards up to $25,000 for expenses like medical bills and lost wages, though not property damage or pain and suffering.7New Jersey Office of the Attorney General. VCCO Eligibility