Stage 6 of 7: Lawsuit
- 1Report
- 2Coverage
- 3Records
- 4Demand
- 5Negotiation
- 6Lawsuit
- 7Release
Texas gives most people two years to sue after a car accident. That sounds like plenty of time until a claim drags, an adjuster stops answering, or the other vehicle turns out to belong to a city. Here is how the statute of limitations for a car accident in Texas works, and where the clock runs faster.
This article is from the Houston office of LAWBOSS – Harris, Nelsen & Uvalle, PLLC. The attorney responsible for Car Wreck Claims Houston is Jonathan Harris, Board Certified, Personal Injury Trial Law – Texas Board of Legal Specialization, practicing primarily from our Houston office.
The basic rule: two years to file suit
Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 16.003(a) says a personal injury suit must be brought “not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues.” For a car wreck, the claim usually accrues on the day of the crash. You can read the statute on the Texas Statutes site.
Two details trip people up. First, the deadline is for filing a lawsuit, not for opening an insurance claim, and talking with an adjuster does not pause it. Second, a lawsuit takes preparation, so a claim that is still being negotiated close to the two-year mark needs a decision well before the last week.
Negotiating with the insurer does not stop the two-year clock.
When a wreck causes a death
A wrongful death claim also has two years, but section 16.003(b) says the claim accrues on the death of the injured person. If someone survives the wreck for a time and later dies of the injuries, the two years for the death claim run from the date of death.
Minors and people of unsound mind
Under section 16.001, the time a person is a minor or of unsound mind is not counted. In practice, a child hurt in a wreck generally has two years from turning 18. That does not mean a family should wait: records fade, witnesses move and vehicles are repaired or scrapped.
The six-month notice for government vehicles
If a city bus, county truck or police car hit you, a much shorter rule applies first. The Texas Tort Claims Act requires written notice to the government unit within six months of the incident, describing the injury, the time and place and the incident itself (Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 101.101). A city charter can set an even shorter notice period, though actual notice to the government unit can excuse a formal one.
These claims also carry statutory limits on what can be recovered: for the state and for a city, $250,000 for each person and $500,000 for each occurrence for bodily injury or death, and for other local government units $100,000 and $300,000 (section 101.023). Those caps are written into the statute; they say nothing about what a particular claim is worth.
Check the other vehicle first
If the vehicle that hit you carried a city or county seal, such as a Houston police car or a city bus, find the six-month notice date before you do anything else.
What the deadline means at each claim stage
We track the deadline from the first stage of every claim. Here is how it touches each one.
| Stage | How the deadline affects it |
|---|---|
| 1 Report | We note the crash date and whether any government vehicle was involved. |
| 2 Coverage | We confirm which insurers are involved and send notices early. |
| 3 Records | We gather records so the claim is ready well inside two years. |
| 4 Demand | We send the demand with time left to negotiate. |
| 5 Negotiation | We set a date to stop negotiating and file if talks stall. |
| 6 Lawsuit | We file in the right court before the deadline runs. |
| 7 Release | A signed release ends the claim, so we confirm it covers only what you agreed to. |
Where a Houston suit is filed
A Harris County car wreck suit is usually filed with the District Clerk and heard in the civil district courts at the Harris County Civil Courthouse, 201 Caroline. Some cases belong in federal court, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas in Houston. Where a case goes depends on who is sued and where the wreck happened, which we check at the start.
If you are close to the deadline, or not sure when it runs, read our guide on how to file a car accident claim and talk with our car accident claims attorney in Houston team. Suing on time is a key piece of any car accident injury claim in Houston.
No Fees or Costs Unless We Win
The firm advances filing fees and the other case costs as they come due. Unless money is recovered for you, there is no attorney’s fee and nothing to repay.
Wondering how much time is left on your claim? Call the Houston office for a free claim review.
Questions about this stage
Does the two-year limit apply to my insurance claim?
The statute in section 16.003 limits lawsuits. Your insurance policy has its own notice terms, which are a separate matter, so report the wreck to your insurer promptly as well.
If the insurer is still negotiating, does the clock stop?
No. Talks with an adjuster do not extend the deadline. If the claim has not resolved, a suit has to be filed in time to protect it.
My child was hurt. When does the deadline run?
Generally two years after the child turns 18, because section 16.001 does not count the time a person is a minor. Waiting that long is rarely wise, since evidence is lost over time.