Most lawsuits have a time limit on filing them. This helps prevent defendants from constantly looking over their shoulders for years, and it means that victims with serious injuries need to act promptly to get their cases paid.
In New York, the car accident statute of limitations is typically 3 years, though wrongful death cases for a loved one’s car accident are typically limited to 2 years. If your case is not filed within the statute of limitations, your claim may be barred. Act quickly.
Do not delay in calling BKS Injury Law at (845) 303-2748 to start your case with our New York car accident lawyers.
What is a Statute of Limitations?
A statute of limitations is a law that sets how long you have to file a case in court. Various statutes of limitations apply to civil and criminal cases, and very few cases have no statute of limitations.
What is the Statute of Limitations for Car Accidents in NY?
In New York, the statute of limitations for car accident claims is 3 years.
If the case is based on wrongful death in a car accident, you have only 2 years to file the wrongful death claim.
What Do You Need to Do Before the Deadline?
To make sure your case is “on time,” take these steps:
Call a Lawyer
Call a New York car accident lawyer as soon as you can to avoid any delays on your end.
File First-Party Claims
You typically file a car insurance claim with your own insurance policy first under our no-fault system in New York. That can pay some damages but usually will not cover everything.
Try to Settle Claim
From there, we will try to get the rest of the damages by filing insurance claims against the defendant and attempting to settle. Courts usually want to see some good-faith attempt to settle before they will even schedule a case for trial.
Collect Evidence to Build Case
We also need time to collect evidence and build your case before we can file it. We must prepare a “complaint” to file in court and serve a copy to the defendant, and that takes time to write.
File on Time and Serve Complaint
The last thing that needs to be done on time is filing the case in court on time and serving the defendant. If you do this too late, your case could be in jeopardy.
What Happens if You Miss the Filing Deadline?
If your case is not filed on time, then there is no legal authority for the court to hear the case. This ultimately gives grounds to dismiss the case, since they can neither hear the case nor order damages paid.
Statute of Limitations for Death Cases
While car accident injury cases give you 3 years from the date of the accident to file, wrongful death cases have to be filed within 2 years of the death. However, the victim’s family can take on the injury case the victim could have filed if they survived. This still has to be filed within 3 years of the accident, rather than counting from their death.
This means that the deadline may be shorter for the wrongful death case, especially if the victim lived for a while before succumbing to their injuries. In this case, though, the personal injury lawsuit might have even been filed before they passed.
These cases are otherwise usually filed together under the shorter filing deadline.
Extending the Statute of Limitations
There are some laws that apply to extend how long you have to sue. However, they are rare for car accident claims. That means you should never rely on these rules; always call a lawyer and work to file your case “on time” if possible.
Tolling
The “limitations period” for the case is set by law, and it usually doesn’t change. Instead, the clock is paused in a process known as “tolling.”
This generally means that the start date for the clock will be pushed back a certain period of time, or else the clock will be paused after it has started.
Underage Injuries
The most common way to toll the statute of limitations is when the victim is a minor. Children cannot bring lawsuits on their own, so the statute of limitations is typically tolled until they are adults.
This would mean they can file within 3 years of turning 18 (i.e., their 21st birthday is the limit). If their parents file on their behalf sooner, then the child cannot file a second time later.
Other Rules
There are other rules that may toll the statute of limitations for periods of time the defendant is out of state and cannot be served. This rarely applies because we have rules that allow out-of-state service, meaning there need to be more issues that prevent service, not just their absence from the state.
Tolling is also allowed when the victim was intellectually disabled at the time of injury.
Discovery Rule
The discovery rule says that you cannot reasonably be expected to file an injury case where it was impossible to discover the injury and negligence. This usually won’t apply to car accidents because you immediately know about the accident.
Fraudulent Concealment
If you are unable to file a claim because the defendant lied about material facts to stop you from discovering the cause, then you may have a case to toll the statute of limitations until the discovery. These situations are exceedingly rare, but it is legally possible.
For example, if the auto shop you take your car to realized the crash was caused by a part they installed wrong, and they hid this by telling you everything looked fine, then you might be able to sue them later when you discover that they truly caused the crash.
Can You Still File Your Case if You Miss the Statute of Limitations?
If you miss the statute of limitations, the case can be blocked in two ways:
- The defense can raise the statute of limitations to say the case needs to be dismissed as untimely filed.
- The court can raise the issue on its own and dismiss the case, even if the defense doesn’t raise the issue.
Is New York’s Statute of Limitations Longer or Shorter than Other States?
Most states allow 2 or 3 years for injury lawsuits, putting New York’s 3-year limit on the longer side. Some states give you more or less time, though some of those longer statutes of limitations are limited to only certain types of cases (e.g., hit and runs).
Call Our Car Accident Lawyers in New York Today
Call Basch, Keegan & Spada’s Kingston, NY personal injury lawyers at (845) 303-2748 for a free evaluation of your case.