Colorado Personal Injury Statute of Limitations

In Colorado, the deadline to sue over a motor-vehicle crash is generally three years. Most other personal-injury claims — a fall, a dog bite, ordinary negligence — are two years. A claim against a public entity also needs a written notice within 182 days. Miss the applicable clock and the claim is gone.^{[1]C.R.S. § 13-80-101(1)(n). Three-year limitation for torts for bodily injury or property damage arising out of the use or operation of a motor vehicle. https://l[2]C.R.S. § 13-80-102. Two-year limitation for most tort, wrongful-death, and public-entity actions, with a four-year wrongful-death exception in subsection (2). h[3]C.R.S. § 24-10-109. Colorado Governmental Immunity Act — written notice of claim within 182 days after discovery of the injury. https://law.justia.com/codes/col}

Key Takeaways

• Car, truck, and motorcycle injury or crash property-damage lawsuits: generally 3 years from accrual.^[1]
• General negligence and most wrongful-death lawsuits: generally 2 years.^[2]
• Claims against a government entity: written CGIA notice within 182 days of discovering the injury, then the lawsuit deadline still applies.^[3][2]
• The clock starts at accrual — usually when the injury and its cause are known or should have been known — not whenever you feel ready.^{[4]C.R.S. § 13-80-108. When a cause of action accrues, including the discovery rule for injury and motor-vehicle claims. https://law.justia.com/codes/colorado/titl}
• A timely filing can still be reduced or barred by Colorado's modified comparative negligence rule.^{[5]C.R.S. § 13-21-111. Comparative negligence — fault can still reduce or bar a timely claim. https://law.justia.com/codes/colorado/title-13/damages-and-limitation}

How Colorado injury deadlines work

A statute of limitations is the deadline to start a lawsuit. It is not the deadline to call an insurer, finish treatment, or wait until you feel like it. Colorado splits injury claims by how you were hurt and who hurt you. Motor-vehicle torts get the longer three-year window.^[1] Ordinary negligence does not.^[2]

That split is the trap. People hear “personal injury is three years in Colorado” and apply it to a sidewalk fall. The three-year provision is for bodily injury or property damage “arising out of the use or operation of a motor vehicle.”^[1] A grocery-store fall is a two-year tort unless a more specific statute says otherwise.^[2]

The steps from crash to filing are laid out in the Colorado personal injury claim process. The deadline is the last day, not the plan.

Claim-type deadline table

Property damage uses the same split: damage from a vehicle crash generally follows the three-year motor-vehicle provision.^[1] Damage from other negligence is generally two years as a tort.^[2] A broken contract can be a different three-year clock under the contract subsection of § 13-80-101. The legal theory matters. Do not assume every property-damage claim gets three years.

When the clock starts (and the discovery-rule caution)

Colorado does not always start the deadline on the crash date. A cause of action for injury to person or property accrues on the date both the injury and its cause are known or should have been known by reasonable diligence.^[4] Motor-vehicle bodily injury and property damage have their own matching accrual rule.^[4] Wrongful death accrues on the date of death.^[4]

For a typical crash, you know the day it happened. The discovery rule is not a spare year because you hoped the pain would fade, and it is not extra time because you later learned the injury was worse than you first thought. Hidden injuries (a delayed diagnosis, a cause that was not reasonably knowable) can shift accrual. Insurers and courts still ask what a reasonably diligent person would have known, and when.

Worked example

Hypothetical. A crash on I-25 on March 1, 2024, injures you. You know you were hurt that day. The motor-vehicle lawsuit deadline is generally March 1, 2027.^[1][4] Settling talks in 2026 do not stop the clock. If no case is filed by the deadline, a later lawsuit is subject to dismissal even if liability was clear.

Change the facts. Same injuries, but a City of Denver snowplow is involved. You still have the lawsuit limitation — and you also have a 182-day written-notice deadline under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act, running from discovery of the injury.^[3] Missing that notice can bar the claim even if the two-year (or three-year) lawsuit statute has not run.

What people get wrong

The myth: “Personal injury in Colorado is always three years.” The three-year statute is the motor-vehicle exception.^[1] The default injury/tort deadline is two years.^[2] The other myth is that an adjuster's “we're still reviewing” pauses the statute. Only a legally recognized toll — or actually filing — stops the clock. A public-entity claim has a separate 182-day notice that people treat as optional paperwork. It is a condition of suit.^[3]

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do I have to file a car accident lawsuit in Colorado?

Generally three years after the claim accrues for bodily injury or property damage from a motor vehicle.^[1] Accrual is usually the crash date, subject to the discovery rule.^[4]

Is a slip-and-fall also three years?

No. Ordinary negligence, including most premises claims, is generally two years.^[2] Do not borrow the motor-vehicle deadline unless the injury arose from use or operation of a motor vehicle.^[1]

What is the 182-day government deadline?

Under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act, you must file a written notice of claim within 182 days after discovering the injury.^[3] That notice is separate from, and earlier than, the lawsuit limitation.

Does the discovery rule give me extra years on a crash I remember?

Usually no. Accrual is when the injury and its cause are known or should have been known.^[4] A crash you lived through is typically known that day. Later learning the injury is more serious is not the same as not knowing you were hurt.

Does settling or partial fault change the deadline?

A final settlement usually ends the right to sue, so the statute no longer matters. Partial fault is a separate issue under comparative negligence: you can still be on time and recover nothing if you are 50% or more at fault.^[5]

Bottom Line

Match the deadline to the claim: 3 years for most motor-vehicle injury and crash property-damage suits, 2 years for most other injury and wrongful-death suits, and 182 days to notice a public entity.^[1][2][3] File early enough to build the case, not on the last morning. Colorado is an at-fault state, so the clock and the fault fight run together. For a free consult on which deadline applies, call (720) 432-7032.

Article Sources

1. C.R.S. § 13-80-101(1)(n). Three-year limitation for torts for bodily injury or property damage arising out of the use or operation of a motor vehicle. https://law.justia.com/codes/colorado/title-13/limitation-of-actions/article-80/section-13-80-101/. Accessed September 8, 2026. ↩
2. C.R.S. § 13-80-102. Two-year limitation for most tort, wrongful-death, and public-entity actions, with a four-year wrongful-death exception in subsection (2). https://law.justia.com/codes/colorado/title-13/limitation-of-actions/article-80/section-13-80-102/. Accessed September 8, 2026. ↩
3. C.R.S. § 24-10-109. Colorado Governmental Immunity Act — written notice of claim within 182 days after discovery of the injury. https://law.justia.com/codes/colorado/title-24/state-government-state-affairs/article-10/part-1/section-24-10-109/. Accessed September 8, 2026. ↩
4. C.R.S. § 13-80-108. When a cause of action accrues, including the discovery rule for injury and motor-vehicle claims. https://law.justia.com/codes/colorado/title-13/limitation-of-actions/article-80/section-13-80-108/. Accessed September 8, 2026. ↩
5. C.R.S. § 13-21-111. Comparative negligence — fault can still reduce or bar a timely claim. https://law.justia.com/codes/colorado/title-13/damages-and-limitations-on-actions/article-21/part-1/section-13-21-111/. Accessed September 8, 2026. ↩

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The law is complex and every case is unique. You should consult a qualified attorney to discuss the specifics of your situation, including which limitation period applies.