Guide · California
California Car Accident Claim Deadlines
Every deadline that can end a claim, from 10 days to two years.
Updated . General information, not legal advice about your situation.
Legal review: Elham Azimy, California State Bar No. 207274 (law and claims only).
Deadlines are the one part of a car accident claim that cannot be fixed later. California’s statutes of limitations are shorter than many people assume, the government claim deadline is shorter still, and insurance contracts add deadlines of their own. This guide lists every one that commonly applies.
Summary table
| Deadline | Time limit | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| Report crash to DMV (SR-1) | 10 days | Vehicle Code § 16000 |
| Report hit-and-run to police (for UM claim) | 24 hours | Standard policy; Ins. Code § 11580.2 |
| Report hit-and-run to insurer (for UM claim) | 30 days | Standard policy; Ins. Code § 11580.2 |
| Government claim (public entity) | 6 months from injury | Gov. Code § 911.2 |
| Lawsuit for personal injury | 2 years from injury | Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1 |
| Lawsuit for wrongful death | 2 years from death | Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1 |
| Lawsuit for property damage | 3 years from damage | Code Civ. Proc. § 338 |
| UM/UIM demand or arbitration | 2 years (contractual, with tolling rules) | Ins. Code § 11580.2(i) |
| Lawsuit after government claim rejected | 6 months from written rejection | Gov. Code § 945.6 |
Personal injury: two years
Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1 gives two years from the date of injury to file a lawsuit. Negotiating with an insurer does not pause the clock; if no settlement is reached and no suit is filed by the deadline, the claim is barred. Attorneys typically file suit well before the deadline when a claim is not resolving. The “discovery rule” can delay the start of the period where an injury could not reasonably have been discovered, but it rarely applies to crash injuries.
Government entities: six months
If a city, county, state agency or other public entity may be liable—a city bus or police car, a CHP pursuit, a dangerous intersection, a missing guardrail, malfunctioning signals, Caltrans construction zone—a written claim must be presented to that entity within six months of the injury (Government Code § 911.2) before any lawsuit. Each entity has its own claim form. The entity has 45 days to respond; if it rejects the claim in writing, suit must be filed within six months of the rejection; if it does not respond, within two years of the injury. A late claim application is possible within one year for limited reasons, and is often denied. This is the deadline most commonly missed by people handling their own claims.
Minors
For an injured child, the two-year personal injury period is tolled until the child turns 18 (Code of Civil Procedure § 352), so a minor generally has until age 20. The six-month government claim deadline is not tolled for minors in the same way, though a late-claim application for a minor is more readily granted. Settlements for minors require court approval (a “minor’s compromise”).
Wrongful death
Two years from the date of death, which may be later than the crash. Government claim rules apply equally. See wrongful death.
Insurance deadlines
Policies require prompt notice of a crash, often within days. UM/UIM claims in California must be pursued within two years by filing suit against the uninsured driver, agreeing in writing with the insurer to arbitrate, or formally demanding arbitration (Insurance Code § 11580.2(i)); the period is tolled while the at-fault driver’s claim is pending in some circumstances, but the safe course is to make a written UM/UIM demand early. Med-pay and health insurance have their own submission windows.
Tolling and exceptions
- The defendant’s absence from California can toll the period (Code Civ. Proc. § 351), though this is limited by constitutional rulings.
- A plaintiff’s legal incapacity (not merely injury) can toll the period.
- Criminal prosecution of the defendant for a felony arising from the crash can extend the civil deadline in some circumstances (Code Civ. Proc. § 340.3).
- Agreements with insurers to extend the deadline (tolling agreements) are possible but must be in writing.
None of these should be relied on without legal advice.
Common questions
I have been negotiating with the insurer for 22 months. Do I have more time?
No. Negotiation does not extend the two-year deadline. If the insurer has not paid, a lawsuit must be filed before the deadline or the claim is lost. Insurers are aware of the deadline and sometimes slow negotiations as it approaches.
A city bus hit me. Is the deadline really six months?
Yes, to present a written claim to the transit agency or city. Missing it generally ends the claim unless a late-claim application is granted.
My child was injured. Do we have to decide now?
The injury lawsuit deadline is tolled until the child turns 18, but evidence degrades and insurance information is lost. The government claim deadline is not tolled in the same way. It is usually better to act promptly.
Describe what happened. Attorney Elham Azimy reviews every inquiry personally and, if we can help, calls you to talk it through. Free evaluation; no fee unless we recover for you.
Sources and official resources
- Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1 (two-year limit for injury claims)
- Government Code § 911.2 (six-month claim deadline against public entities)
- Government Code § 945.6 (lawsuit deadline after government claim rejection)
- Vehicle Code § 16000 (SR-1 report to DMV within 10 days)
- Insurance Code § 11580.2 (uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage)
- California Courts Self-Help Guide
Links go to official government, court and public-health sources. Laws change; verify current text before relying on it.