In California, you generally have two years from the date of a car accident to file a personal injury lawsuit under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. Vehicle damage claims get three years. If a government vehicle or a dangerous public road was involved, you must present a government claim within six months.
A statute of limitations is the legal deadline to file a lawsuit. Miss it, and the court will almost always dismiss your case, no matter how badly you were hurt. This article explains the deadlines that apply to California car accident claims, the exceptions that shorten or extend them, and the steps that protect your claim. It applies to California claims. Every case is different.
How long do you have to file a car accident lawsuit in California?
You have two years from the date of the crash to file a personal injury lawsuit. That deadline comes from Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1, which covers an injury to, or the death of, a person caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another. The clock usually starts the day of the collision, not the day you finish treatment and not the day the insurance company makes an offer.
Two years sounds like plenty of time. In our practice we see how fast it disappears. People spend a year treating, then months going back and forth with an adjuster, and suddenly the anniversary is close and no lawsuit is on file. The deadline does not care where your negotiations stand. If the case is not settled or filed in time, the claim is gone.
What is the deadline for vehicle damage claims?
You have three years to sue for damage to your car and other personal property under Code of Civil Procedure section 338. That is a separate deadline from the two year injury deadline, and the two claims can move on different tracks. The California courts publish a plain language summary of these deadlines to sue someone on their self-help site.
In real cases the property damage piece usually resolves early. The repair bill is easy to prove, so carriers pay it while the injury claim is still open. The trap runs the other way. People assume that because the insurer paid for the bumper, the injury claim is safe too. It is not. Your injury claim still dies at two years unless you file suit or sign a settlement before then.
What if your crash involved a government vehicle or road?
You must present a written government claim within six months if a public entity may be responsible for your crash. Government Code section 911.2 requires a claim for injury or death to be presented no later than six months after the cause of action accrues. Only after the claim is presented, and rejected or ignored, can you file a lawsuit, and short deadlines apply to that step too.
This rule reaches more crashes than people expect. A city bus, a county maintenance truck, a sheriff’s cruiser, a Metro vehicle, a school district van. It also covers dangerous conditions of public roads, like a missing stop sign, a broken signal, or an intersection design that hides oncoming traffic. Around San Dimas and the San Gabriel Valley, crashes on city streets that feed I-210, I-10, or Arrow Highway can raise these questions, and six months is very little time to investigate them.
In our experience, one of the biggest mistakes injured people make after a crash is assuming the two year deadline is the only one that matters. That mistake can matter because a claim against a city, county, or Caltrans can die at six months, long before most people even talk to a lawyer. If you are dealing with this issue, save your police report, photos, and medical records and do not wait for the insurance company to finish negotiating before speaking with an attorney.
Can the deadline be paused or extended?
Yes, in limited situations the law pauses the clock. Lawyers call it tolling. The most common example is a child. When the injured person is a minor, the two year lawsuit deadline generally does not start running until their eighteenth birthday. Another is delayed discovery, where the injury or its cause was not reasonably discoverable right away. Time a defendant spends out of state may not count either. These doctrines are narrow, fact specific, and fought over, so no one should rely on them without advice.
Here is the short version of the deadlines that control most California car accident cases:
- 1Two years. File a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit, or have a signed settlement, under CCP 335.1.
- 2Three years. File a lawsuit for vehicle and other property damage under CCP 338.
- 3Six months. Present a government claim if a city, county, Caltrans, or other public entity may be at fault. Gov. Code 911.2.
- 4Two years for uninsured motorist claims. Take one of the formal steps Insurance Code 11580.2 requires with your own carrier.
- 5Minors. The lawsuit clock usually pauses until age 18, but government claim rules are different and strict. Do not wait.
Does the insurance claim deadline match the lawsuit deadline?
No. Your insurance policy requires prompt notice of a crash, often within days, and California’s Fair Claims Settlement Practices Regulations, including 10 CCR 2695.7, set deadlines for how fast insurers must acknowledge and decide claims. None of that changes your court deadline. Negotiating with an adjuster does not stop the statute of limitations, and adjusters know it.
We see the same pattern again and again. The adjuster stays friendly, asks for one more record, floats a low number, and lets months pass. Then the offers stop moving, because the closer you get to the two year mark without a lawsuit on file, the less reason the carrier has to pay. That timing pressure is also why the first number is rarely the right one, and why it helps to understand whether to accept the first settlement offer after a car accident before you sign anything.
Not sure what to do next? You can call Morales Law Firm for a free consultation before speaking with the insurance company, and there is no fee unless we win.
Call (626) 521-5402
What if the driver who hit you was uninsured or fled?
Uninsured motorist claims have their own two year rule. Under Insurance Code section 11580.2, you generally must do one of three things within two years of the crash: file suit against the uninsured driver, formally demand arbitration with your own carrier, or reach a written agreement with that carrier. Simply having an open claim is not enough. A hit and run works the same way, since an unidentified driver is treated as uninsured, and prompt reporting requirements apply on top of the two year rule.
This is a first party claim against your own policy, but do not expect your own carrier to volunteer these deadlines. Missing the formal step can end a claim that was otherwise worth the policy limits. Even after what looks like a minor car accident where you are unsure a lawyer is needed, it costs nothing to have the deadline checked.
What happens if you miss the deadline?
If you file after the statute of limitations runs, the defense will ask the court to dismiss, and the court almost always will. It does not matter that the other driver ran a red light or that your medical bills are real. The claim is barred. Your negotiating power dies at the same moment, because an insurer has no reason to pay a claim you can no longer take to court. The exceptions are rare and hard to win, so the practical rule is simple. Treat the earliest possible deadline as the real one, and get the case filed or settled well before it.
When should you call a lawyer?
Call sooner rather than later if any of these are true in your case:
- 1A government entity may be involved. A public vehicle, a public employee, or a dangerous road condition means a six month clock.
- 2Your injuries are still being treated. Serious injuries take time to value, and that time counts against your two years.
- 3A child was hurt. Tolling helps, but evidence fades and government deadlines still loom.
- 4The other driver was uninsured, underinsured, or fled. The Insurance Code steps must happen on time.
- 5The crash anniversary is within six months. Filing a proper lawsuit takes preparation, not a day.
- 6Fault is disputed. Witnesses move and camera footage gets erased, often within weeks.
How does Morales Law Firm handle statute of limitations deadlines?
Deadline control is the first thing we do. When our car accident practice takes a case, every applicable deadline is calculated and calendared at intake, including the six month government claim date and the uninsured motorist steps, and we work the medical and liability investigation backward from those dates. Our office is in San Dimas, and we handle crashes across the San Gabriel Valley and Inland Empire, filing in the Pomona Courthouse South and the San Bernardino Justice Center. If you are wondering what happens after filing, we have written about how long a personal injury case takes in California from first call to check in hand.
Frequently asked questions
Does the two year deadline apply to wrongful death claims?
Yes. A California wrongful death lawsuit from a fatal car accident is generally governed by the same two year statute, Code of Civil Procedure 335.1, usually measured from the date of death. Government claim rules can shorten the timeline to six months, so families should get deadline advice early.
Does filing an insurance claim stop the statute of limitations?
No. An open insurance claim, ongoing negotiations, or even a promising settlement offer does not pause the court deadline. Only filing a lawsuit, or a signed settlement agreement, protects you. Insurers understand this and sometimes slow negotiations as the deadline approaches, which weakens your position if nothing is on file.
How long do I have if a pothole or dangerous road caused my crash?
Plan on six months. Claims based on a dangerous condition of public property, like a broken signal or an unsafe intersection, run against a city, county, or Caltrans, and Government Code 911.2 requires a written claim within six months. The lawsuit itself comes later, on its own short deadlines.
Can my child’s claim wait until they turn 18?
The two year lawsuit deadline for a minor’s injury claim generally does not start until their eighteenth birthday. Waiting is still risky. Witnesses disappear, footage is erased, and claims involving public entities have separate rules that are not so forgiving. Preserve the evidence and the claim now, even if suit comes later.
What is the deadline for a hit and run accident?
Report it to police right away, then treat it as an uninsured motorist claim under your own policy. Insurance Code 11580.2 generally requires suit, a formal arbitration demand, or a written agreement with your carrier within two years. Your policy also has its own prompt notice requirements for hit and run crashes.
How soon should I report the crash to my insurance company?
Promptly, usually within days. Most policies require immediate notice, and California requires a DMV SR-1 report within 10 days when anyone was injured or the damage is significant. Give your own carrier the basic facts. Before giving any recorded statement to the other driver’s insurer, get legal advice first.
Injured in a crash? Call or text Morales Law Firm at (626) 521-5402 for a free consultation. No fee unless we win.
Call or Text (626) 521-5402This article is for general educational purposes only and is not legal advice. Every case is different. Reading this article does not create an attorney-client relationship. If you were injured, speak with a qualified attorney about your specific facts and deadlines. Reviewed by Francisco J. Morales, Esq., California personal injury attorney, SBN 349235. About the author.
