The answer is a state-specific number of years — but when the clock starts, pauses, and truly ends is where cases are won and lost. General information, not legal advice.
Most states allow two or three years from the crash to file a personal-injury lawsuit; the full range runs from one year to six. The state where the crash happened controls, not where you live. Find your baseline in the state-by-state deadline guide or get exact dates from your state's calculator page.
The clock generally starts on the crash date, because a collision is an obvious injury event. A minority of situations invoke the "discovery rule," where harm wasn't reasonably knowable right away — rare in car accident cases, so never plan around it. Tolling can pause the clock in limited, state-specific situations: the injured person is a minor or legally incapacitated, or the defendant leaves the state or conceals themselves. Wrongful death claims typically run from the date of death instead of the crash. None of these are automatic; treat them as questions for a lawyer, not assumptions.
An open insurance claim, ongoing settlement talks, or an adjuster "still reviewing" your file — none of it stops the statute of limitations. Only a filed lawsuit (or a signed tolling agreement, which insurers rarely volunteer) protects the deadline. Claims against government defendants are stricter still, with pre-suit notice requirements measured in months. If your date may already be behind you, read what to do if you missed the deadline — sometimes an exception genuinely applies.
Worsening of a known injury generally does not restart the clock. The deadline runs from the crash (or discovery, where that rule applies), not from when symptoms peak.
No. The lawsuit deadline runs independently of any insurance claim. File suit or secure a written tolling agreement before the date passes.
Property damage often has its own deadline, which can be longer or shorter than the injury deadline in the same state. Check your state's entry in the state-by-state guide.
Claims can proceed against an estate, and a defendant's absence from the state can toll the clock in some states. Both scenarios have technical requirements — get advice promptly.