How Long Do I Have to File a Car Accident Claim in Virginia

The Short Answer: The Two-Year Lawsuit Deadline

If you are asking how long do I have to file a car accident claim in Virginia, the general answer for injury claims is two years. That rule answers the question most readers ask first.

Virginia generally allows two years from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit (Va. Code § 8.01-243(A)); the clock runs from the date of injury, not the date of discovery, with narrow exceptions.

The statute applies to every action for personal injuries, whatever the theory of recovery. You can read it in full at Va. Code § 8.01-243.

A lawsuit is a formal case filed in court. An insurance claim is a request made to an insurer. Each one follows its own rules and its own timing.

Many people wait to see how their recovery goes before they act. The deadline does not wait with them.

Some claims carry notice requirements that run out sooner. This article covers only the general two-year rule, so keep those other timing rules in mind.

Why the Date of Injury Starts the Clock

Many readers asking how long do I have to file a car accident claim in Virginia want to know when the clock starts. For injury to a person, Virginia’s accrual rule starts the time limit on the date the injury is sustained, except where the relief sought is solely equitable or where otherwise provided under § 8.01-233, subsection C of § 8.01-245, §§ 8.01-249, 8.01-250 or other statute, under Va. Code § 8.01-230. In most crashes, that is the day of the collision.

Consider a hypothetical driver rear-ended on a Shenandoah Valley highway. She feels only a stiff neck that evening and assumes it will pass. Weeks later, numbness in her arm sends her to a doctor.

Her timing question is when the injury happened, and that depends on the facts. The general rule does not wait for symptoms to appear. An attorney may wish to review timing questions like this one early.

In practice, the earlier you write down what happened and when symptoms began, the easier it is to show the timeline later. Medical records from the first visit often show that timeline.

Reporting the Crash to Police Is a Separate Duty

The driver of any vehicle involved in any accident resulting in injury to or death of any person, or some person acting for him, shall immediately give notice of the accident to a law-enforcement officer. A willful failure to make the report required in this section shall constitute a Class 4 misdemeanor (Va. Code § 46.2-371). Virginia requires a driver involved in a crash with injury or death to stop and report it to police immediately (Va. Code §§ 46.2-371, 46.2-894). For a personal injury action, the lawsuit must be filed within two years after the cause of action accrues, unless otherwise provided in this section or by other statute; this is separate from the duty to report a crash (Va. Code § 8.01-243).

Under Va. Code § 46.2-894, the driver must also stop as close to the scene as possible without obstructing traffic, and give reasonable assistance to anyone injured. A driver who willfully fails to make the report can face a Class 4 misdemeanor under Va. Code § 46.2-371.

A police report can record names, vehicles and the scene while details are fresh. That record can matter later when the facts are reviewed.

That duty applies to crashes that cause injury or death.

Insurance Claims Follow Their Own Timing

Reporting a crash to an insurance company is a separate step from reporting it to police or filing a lawsuit. Each one has its own requirements, so track them separately.

Your own policy and any letter from an insurer may set notice terms. Read the claim-reporting language in your policy and in any letter an insurer sends you. Note any date the letter names, and keep copies of what you send.

Notice terms can run on a schedule that is separate from the lawsuit deadline. Treat any date an insurer names as a date to track, and ask the insurer to confirm in writing what it received and when.

Insurers may also request statements, records or medical authorizations. An attorney may wish to review those requests before you respond. Writing down the date of each contact helps keep your records organized.

Hit-and-Run and Unidentified Drivers

A crash involving a driver who leaves the scene can raise different questions about timing and reporting. The duty to stop and report under Va. Code § 46.2-894 applies to every driver involved in a crash with injury or death, including a driver who left.

Claims tied to an uninsured or unidentified driver can involve extra steps and notice terms. An attorney may wish to review those steps early, because timing can matter in these cases. Your own policy’s terms may also matter, so keep it handy.

While the details are fresh, write down the time, the location, any vehicle details you saw, and the names of witnesses. Those notes can help sort out what happened later.

If the other driver is identified later, the facts may change. Keep every new detail in the same timeline.

When a Crash Results in a Death: The Wrongful Death Deadline

Families asking about a fatal crash face a different rule than the injury deadline. A Virginia wrongful death action is filed by the decedent’s personal representative within two years of the death (Va. Code §§ 8.01-50(C), 8.01-244(B)), on behalf of the family members the statute protects.

A personal representative is the person appointed to handle the decedent’s estate. Families should know early who holds that role.

The statutes are at Va. Code § 8.01-50 and Va. Code § 8.01-244.

Virginia wrongful death damages cover the family’s sorrow, mental anguish and loss of the decedent’s companionship, guidance and care; lost income and services; medical expenses from the injury; funeral expenses; and, for willful or wanton conduct, punitive damages (Va. Code § 8.01-52).

For more on the broader topic, see the wrongful death claims page.

How Fault Can Affect a Claim

Fault is one of the first questions in any Virginia crash claim. Virginia follows contributory negligence: if you are found even partly at fault, you may be barred from recovering, with limited exceptions (Contributory negligence bars recovery in Virginia). Talk to a lawyer about your facts.

Fault is not always one driver’s alone.

Photos, the police report and any dashcam video often help show how the crash happened. Gather what you can early and keep it in one place.

Reviewing Your Crash Facts With Correll Law Firm

Under Va. Code § 8.01-243(A), unless otherwise provided in that section or by other statute, every action for personal injuries, whatever the theory of recovery, shall be brought within two years after the cause of action accrues (Va. Code § 8.01-243). Each one runs on its own schedule, and one does not replace another.

Virginia law applies to crashes from the Shenandoah Valley to Richmond and Henrico County. Correll Law Firm has offices in Winchester and Harrisonburg, and it serves people in Richmond and Henrico County. For broader information, read the car accident claims page.

Keep a simple timeline: the crash date, the date of any injury symptoms, the police report date, each insurer contact, and every doctor visit. A written timeline makes later questions easier to answer.

Filing deadlines for a Virginia car accident claim