Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury Cases in Florida

Florida cut its filing deadline for injury claims in half in 2023. A case that would have been timely under the old rule can now be barred entirely, and no amount of evidence fixes a missed deadline.

The Current Two-Year Deadline

Most negligence claims in Florida must be filed within two years of the date the cause of action accrued. That deadline appears in section 95.11, Florida Statutes, which the Legislature amended as part of the 2023 tort reform package.

The previous window was four years. Claims that accrued before the amendment took effect on March 24, 2023 generally remain governed by the older four-year rule, while anything arising afterward falls under the shorter period. Because that cutoff turns on the date of the accident rather than the date you hired an attorney, confirming which rule applies is one of the first things worth settling.

Wrongful death claims have always carried a two-year limit and continue to do so, though the clock in those cases runs from the date of death rather than the date of the underlying incident.

What Accrual Actually Means

The deadline runs from accrual, which is the moment the last element of the claim comes together. In a straightforward collision that is the date of the crash. In other cases it is less obvious.

• An injury that surfaces later. Some conditions, particularly spinal and neurological damage, are not diagnosed for weeks. The date of injury usually still controls, but the delay complicates proof.
• A defect discovered after the fact. Product cases may accrue when the harm and its cause are both known, subject to a separate outer limit.
• An injury to a minor. Special tolling rules can extend the window, though not indefinitely, and they do not apply to every type of claim.
• Concealment by the responsible party. Section 95.051, Florida Statutes pauses the clock when a defendant hides, uses a false name, or leaves the state to avoid service.

None of these exceptions is automatic. Each requires a factual showing, and courts read them narrowly.

Claims Against Cities, Counties, and the State

A crash involving a municipal vehicle or an injury on public property runs on a different track entirely. Under section 768.28, Florida Statutes, you must present a written notice of claim to the appropriate agency and to the Department of Financial Services before filing suit, and the agency then has a period to investigate before litigation can begin.

That notice requirement is not a formality. Failing to serve it correctly, or serving it on the wrong entity, bars the claim no matter how clearly the government was at fault. The statute also caps what can be recovered absent legislative approval.

Why Waiting Costs More Than Time

The deadline is the outer boundary, not a target. Cases built close to it tend to be weaker cases, because the material that proves them decays long before two years pass.

Surveillance footage is routinely overwritten within thirty days. Vehicles get repaired or sold, taking event data recorder information with them. Witnesses move and stop returning calls. Scene conditions change with the next resurfacing project. What can be documented early shapes what can be argued later.

Insurers are aware of the calendar as well. Negotiations that stretch pleasantly along for eighteen months can turn abruptly once the deadline is close enough that filing suit is no longer realistic. Knowing when to involve an attorney matters partly for this reason.

How the Deadline Interacts With Fault

Time pressure compounds the fault problem. Rebutting an insurer’s allocation under Florida’s comparative fault rule takes reconstruction, records, and sometimes testimony, all of which take months to assemble. A claim filed at the last moment often proceeds with whatever evidence happens to still exist rather than the evidence that would have been available.

Complex cases feel this most. A truck accident claim requires driver logs, maintenance histories, and carrier records that must be demanded before routine retention periods expire. A premises liability case may depend on incident reports and inspection logs the property owner has no obligation to preserve indefinitely. Families pursuing a wrongful death claim face the same pressure while managing an estate and a probate court appointment.

Talk to a Florida Personal Injury Attorney

Deadlines in Florida injury law are unforgiving, and the exceptions are narrower than people assume. Tuttle Larsen Injury Attorneys has handled these claims across the Treasure Coast and Space Coast for more than 55 years combined. A car accident lawyer from our office can confirm which deadline governs your case and what has to happen before it. We represent injured people throughout Indian River, Brevard, and St. Lucie counties. If you were hurt in an accident, contact our office before the calendar decides the question for you. Cases are handled on a contingency fee basis, and consultations are free.

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