Two years sounds like plenty of time. For a lot of people hurt in Birmingham wrecks, it isn’t. Treatment drags on, the insurance company stalls, and by the time anyone thinks about filing suit, the deadline is a few weeks away or already gone. Alabama gives injured people one of the shorter windows in the country, so it’s worth knowing exactly how it works.
The basic rule
Under Ala. Code § 6-2-38(l), actions for injury to a person that don’t arise from a contract must be brought within two years. A car, truck, motorcycle, bicycle or pedestrian crash case falls squarely in that bucket. The same section, at subsection (n), sets two years for claims against an employer for an employee’s conduct, which is how many trucking and delivery-van cases are pleaded.
“Brought” means filed in court. Sending a demand letter to an insurance company doesn’t stop the clock. Neither does an adjuster telling you they’re “still reviewing the file.” Only a lawsuit filed in the right court before the deadline protects the claim, unless the case settles first.
When the clock starts
For a crash, the clock almost always starts on the day of the wreck, because that’s when the injury happens. Alabama doesn’t give you two years from the day you finish physical therapy or the day a doctor finally connects your back pain to the accident. If you were hurt on the I-65 bridge over the Jones Valley on March 3, the deadline to file suit is generally March 3 two years later.
Wrongful death time starts at the death
If someone dies because of a crash, the family’s case is filed by the estate’s personal representative under Ala. Code § 6-5-410. Subsection (d) says it has to start within two years after the death. When a person dies weeks after a wreck, that changes the date. The Alabama Supreme Court has also treated this deadline as part of the claim itself, which means the usual tolling rules don’t apply. In Cofer v. Ensor (1985), the court said the two-year period in the wrongful death statute isn’t paused even for a minor plaintiff. Families sometimes lose time setting up the estate in probate court, so that step deserves early attention. Our wrongful death guide covers how these cases differ.
Children hurt in crashes
Alabama’s age of majority is 19. When the injured person is a minor, Ala. Code § 6-2-8 generally pauses the personal injury deadline until the disability is removed, which for most kids means their 19th birthday. That’s helpful, but it’s not a reason to wait. Witnesses scatter, video disappears and the parents’ own claim for medical bills they paid can have different timing. A minor’s settlement in Alabama also usually needs a court’s approval, which takes time of its own.
Claims against a city or county have earlier deadlines
This is the trap that catches people most often. If a Birmingham city vehicle, a city bus, a garbage truck or a dangerous city street played a part in your crash, the two-year rule is not the first deadline you face. Alabama requires tort claims against a municipality to be presented to the city clerk within six months under Ala. Code § 11-47-23, with a sworn statement described in § 11-47-192. Claims against a county have to be presented within 12 months under § 11-12-8. Missing the notice can end the claim even though two years haven’t passed. We walk through it in our guide to claims against the City of Birmingham.
Property damage
Your car is a separate claim from your body. Many people settle the vehicle damage quickly with an insurer and keep the injury claim open, which is common and usually fine, as long as the paperwork you sign for the car doesn’t release the injury claim too. Read any release carefully. If it says “all claims” or “bodily injury,” stop and ask questions before signing.
What if a case is dismissed?
Section 6-2-38(p) has a narrow saving rule. If a case was filed on time, the plaintiff won, and the judgment was later reversed or arrested on appeal, a new action can be started within one year after that reversal, even if the original window has closed. It’s a specific situation and doesn’t help someone who simply filed late.
A rough timeline for a typical Birmingham crash
- Day one to week one. Medical care, the police report number, photos and the first insurance calls.
- Weeks two through eight. Get the crash report, gather medical bills, and note whether a government vehicle or road condition was involved.
- Before month six. If a city is involved, the claim must be in the clerk’s hands.
- Months six through eighteen. Treatment winds down, bills and lost wages get added up, and a demand is sent. Negotiations happen here.
- Months eighteen to twenty-four. If the case isn’t settled, suit gets filed in circuit court, usually in Jefferson County. Our guide to filing an injury case in Jefferson County explains the courthouse side.
That last stretch is where people get hurt. A lawyer brought in at month 23 has very little time to investigate, find the right defendants and draft a complaint. Bringing someone in earlier leaves room to do it properly.
The quick table
For a side-by-side view of the deadlines that come up most in Alabama crash cases, see our statute of limitations table.
Nothing here is legal advice. Deadlines can turn on facts that aren’t obvious, like who owned a vehicle or which government entity maintains a road. If you’re anywhere close to a deadline, talk with an Alabama lawyer right away.