This is the one deadline with no remedy.
Miss it and your claim is generally gone, however clear the fault, however serious the injury, and however sympathetic the facts. The defendant raises the expired deadline, and the court dismisses the case. That is the whole conversation.
Cornell’s Legal Information Institute defines a statute of limitations as the law setting the maximum time after an event within which legal proceedings may be initiated. In plain terms, it is a clock, it starts running without telling you, and it does not care whether you were still negotiating with an insurer.
The short version
Deadlines are set by state law and vary between states. There is no single national personal injury deadline.
The clock usually starts on the date of the injury, though there are exceptions.
Claims against government bodies often have far shorter deadlines, sometimes measured in months, and sometimes requiring a formal notice long before any lawsuit.
Negotiating with an insurer does not pause the clock. This is the most common way people lose otherwise good claims.
Filing means filing a lawsuit in court. Sending a demand letter, opening an insurance claim, or exchanging emails with an adjuster does not stop the clock.
Why this page does not carry a 50 state table
Most pages on this topic publish a table of all fifty states. We have not, and the reason matters.
Those tables are frequently wrong or out of date. Legislatures amend limitation periods, courts reinterpret when a claim accrues, and different claim types within the same state carry different deadlines. A table that is 90% accurate is worse than no table, because the reader has no way to know which row is the wrong one.
Publishing a deadline someone relies on and gets wrong is the single most harmful error this site could make. So instead of a table assembled from other websites, this page explains how the rules work, and we publish state pages individually as each is verified against that state’s own statute.
Where we do state a deadline, we cite the statute and link to the official source. Below is one worked example.
Worked example: California
California’s general personal injury deadline sits in Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1, which reads in full:
Within two years: An action for assault, battery, or injury to, or for the death of, an individual caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another.
That is the entire section. You can read it on the state’s own site at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov.
Two years, from the wrongful act or neglect, covering most injury claims and wrongful death. Straightforward on its face.
But California also has shorter and different rules for other situations, including claims involving public entities and medical malpractice, which follow their own timelines. That pattern, one general rule plus a set of important exceptions, repeats in every state.
Verify your own state’s statute rather than assuming it matches California’s.
When the clock starts
Usually the date of the injury. Three situations change that.
The discovery rule
Some injuries are not apparent immediately. Where a state applies a discovery rule, the clock may start when the injured person discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the injury and its cause.
This matters most for latent conditions, delayed-onset injuries, and cases where the cause was not obvious at the time.
The rule’s scope varies significantly by state, and it is often narrower than people hope. Do not assume it applies to you.
Minors
Where the injured person is a child, many states pause the clock until they reach adulthood, so the period begins running at 18 rather than at the date of injury.
The details differ, and some claim types are excluded, but the general principle is widely applied.
Legal incapacity
Where an injured person lacks legal capacity, for example while in a coma or under a legal incapacity, many states pause the clock until capacity is regained. States commonly cap how long that pause can extend the deadline.
What tolling means, and what it does not cover
“Tolling” means pausing the clock. States recognize various tolling grounds, which can include the injured person’s minority or incapacity, and in some states the defendant’s absence from the state.
What does not toll the clock, in almost every case:
- Ongoing negotiations with an insurance company
- Waiting for medical treatment to finish
- The insurer telling you your claim is “still under review”
- Not knowing a deadline existed
- Being unable to find or afford a lawyer
That first one causes more lost claims than all the others combined. An adjuster who keeps a claim moving pleasantly for eighteen months has not extended anything. The clock runs the entire time.
Government claims: the trap within the trap
If your injury involves a city, county, state agency, public transport operator, public hospital, school district, or a government employee acting in the course of their job, assume the rules are different and much shorter.
Many jurisdictions require a formal written notice of claim to the public entity within a period measured in months, long before any lawsuit could be filed. Miss that notice and the right to sue can be extinguished entirely, even though the general limitation period has years left on it.
Government defendants are not always obvious. A collision with a bus, a fall on a pavement or in a public building, treatment at a public hospital, or a dangerous road condition can all involve a public entity.
If there is any chance a government body is involved, get advice quickly, in weeks rather than months.
Different claims, different deadlines
Within a single state, limitation periods commonly differ depending on the type of claim. Medical malpractice, wrongful death, product liability, and claims against public entities frequently run on their own timetables, and some carry additional outer limits that cut off claims regardless of when they were discovered.
Do not apply the general injury deadline to a specialised claim without checking. The label on your case affects the deadline.
Filing means filing
A point worth stating bluntly, because it costs people cases.
The deadline is for commencing a lawsuit in court. It is not met by:
- Reporting the incident
- Opening a claim with an insurer
- Sending a demand letter
- Being in active settlement negotiations
- Having a lawyer who is “working on it”
If the limitation period expires while a claim sits with an adjuster, the claim is over. The insurer is under no obligation to warn you, and some are entirely content to let the clock run.
What to do, and when
Immediately. Establish two things: which state’s law applies, and whether any government entity might be a defendant. Both change the timetable.
Within weeks, not months. Speak to a licensed attorney in that state. Most personal injury lawyers offer a free consultation, so establishing your deadline costs nothing. Our guide to what a personal injury lawyer costs explains how contingency fees work.
Throughout. Keep your own record of the incident date, treatment dates, and every communication. If a dispute about timing arises later, contemporaneous records matter.
Long before the deadline. If you intend to pursue a claim, do not let it reach the final weeks. Lawyers frequently decline cases brought to them close to the deadline, because there is no time to investigate properly.
If you think the deadline has passed
It may not have. Get advice before giving up, because:
- Tolling may apply, particularly for minors or incapacity
- A discovery rule may have delayed the start date
- Your claim type may carry a longer period than you assumed
- The accrual date may not be what you think
Equally, do not assume an exception rescues you. Have someone qualified check, and do it now rather than later, since even an available exception can have its own limits.
Frequently asked questions
How long do I have to file a personal injury claim?
It depends on your state and the type of claim. There is no national deadline. Many states use a period of a small number of years for general injury claims, but claims against government entities are often far shorter, and specialised claims such as medical malpractice frequently run on separate timetables. Verify your state’s statute rather than relying on a general figure.
Does negotiating with the insurance company extend the deadline?
No, and this is the most common way good claims are lost. The limitation period runs while you negotiate. An insurer is not obliged to warn you that your deadline is approaching, and settlement discussions do not stop the clock. Only filing a lawsuit in court does.
What happens if I miss the statute of limitations?
The defendant raises it as a defense and the court dismisses the case, regardless of how strong the evidence is or how serious the injury. There are limited exceptions involving tolling or delayed discovery, but they are narrower than most people expect and should be assessed by an attorney rather than assumed.
When does the clock actually start?
Usually the date of the injury. Where a state applies a discovery rule, it may start when you discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the injury and its cause. For minors, many states delay the start until adulthood. For someone lacking legal capacity, the period is often paused until capacity returns.
Are the rules different for claims against a city or government agency?
Yes, and usually much shorter. Many jurisdictions require a written notice of claim within months of the injury, well before any lawsuit. Missing that notice can end the right to sue entirely even though the ordinary limitation period has not expired. Government defendants are not always obvious, so raise the possibility early.
Does the deadline differ for a car accident versus a slip and fall?
In many states both fall under the same general personal injury limitation period, because both are negligence claims. But claims against public entities, product liability claims and medical malpractice claims frequently differ. The type of defendant often matters more than the type of accident. See what drives a slip and fall settlement amount for how these claims are valued.
I was injured as a child. Is it too late?
Possibly not. Many states pause the limitation period until the injured person turns 18, meaning the clock starts then rather than at the date of injury. The details vary and some claim types are treated differently, so this is worth checking with an attorney in the relevant state rather than assuming either way.
Can a deadline be extended by agreement?
Parties sometimes agree in writing to extend a limitation period, often called a tolling agreement, though whether and how this works varies by state and claim type. It is not something to rely on informally. A verbal assurance from an adjuster is worth nothing.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Limitation periods are set by state law, differ by claim type, and change over time. Confirm the deadline that applies to you with a licensed attorney in your state promptly. Missing it is the one mistake with no remedy.