After a car accident, most people focus on getting medical treatment, recovering from their injuries, and dealing with insurance companies. But another important question often comes up: How soon can you file a lawsuit, and how long can you wait before it's too late?
In Massachusetts, most injured individuals have three years to file a personal injury lawsuit following a car accident. However, filing a lawsuit shortly after an accident involves a different consideration: the state's $2,000 medical expense threshold.
Understanding the difference between when you can sue and when you must sue can help you make more informed decisions about your personal injury claim.
How long do you have to sue after a Car Accident in Massachusetts?
Massachusetts generally has a three-year statute of limitations for personal injury lawsuits arising from car accidents. This means that, for most injured individuals, a lawsuit must be filed within three years of the accident.
However, not everyone is subject to the same deadline. Certain circumstances may extend the time available to bring a lawsuit.
For example, children generally have until their 21st birthday to file a personal injury lawsuit. Certain incapacities or circumstances involving death may also affect the filing deadline.
These exceptions are important because the standard three-year period does not necessarily apply to every accident victim.
How soon can you file a Car Accident lawsuit?
While the statute of limitations establishes how long you have to file, another question is how early you can begin. Massachusetts has a $2,000 medical expense threshold, commonly referred to as the tort threshold.
Under the medical expense threshold discussed here, an injured person generally needs at least $2,000 in qualifying medical bills before bringing a lawsuit for injuries sustained in a car accident.
For some accident victims, reaching that amount may happen almost immediately. For others, it may take longer.
Can you reach the $2,000 threshold after just one hospital visit?
Consider a car accident in Lowell, Massachusetts. If an injured person is transported by ambulance to an emergency room, the resulting medical expenses may already exceed $2,000.
In that situation, the person may satisfy the medical expense threshold shortly after the accident.
However, someone who does not require an ambulance or emergency room treatment may take longer to accumulate $2,000 in medical expenses.
This distinction helps explain why two people injured in separate accidents may become eligible to file lawsuits at different times.
Should you sue immediately after reaching the $2,000 threshold?
Reaching the medical expense threshold does not automatically mean that filing a lawsuit immediately is the best decision.
There is an important difference between having the legal ability to bring a lawsuit and deciding when it is appropriate to do so. For example, someone may reach the $2,000 threshold the day after an accident. Another person may reach it a month later.
In either situation, satisfying the threshold may make it possible to bring a lawsuit. Whether filing at that particular time is prudent is a separate question.
The key is to understand that the earliest possible filing date and the most appropriate time to pursue litigation are not necessarily the same.
What if you wait too long to file a lawsuit?
For most Massachusetts car accident victims, the three-year statute of limitations creates an important deadline.
Although certain exceptions may extend that period, injured individuals should not assume that an extension applies to their situation. At the same time, there is no need to confuse the deadline for filing with the medical expense threshold that may determine when a lawsuit can first be brought.
Understanding both requirements can help accident victims avoid unnecessary confusion about their legal options.
Injured in a Car Accident in Lowell, MA? Understand Your Legal Options
If you have been injured in a car accident, knowing when you can file a lawsuit is only part of understanding your personal injury claim.
The Law Office of Louis S. Haskell in Lowell, Massachusetts, can help you review your circumstances, understand the applicable filing deadlines, and determine whether pursuing a personal injury lawsuit may be appropriate.
Call (978) 459-8359 to schedule a consultation
TL;DR
Most car accident lawsuits must be filed within three years.
Massachusetts has a $2,000 medical expense threshold.
Ambulance and emergency room bills may satisfy that threshold.
Being eligible to sue doesn't always mean you should file immediately.
Not sure what your options are?
Tell us about your situation. Complete the form below to request a consultation and discuss which options may be available to you.
Do you really need to file a lawsuit after a car accident? Learn what must happen before you can sue in Massachusetts, how the $2,000 medical expense threshold works, and how long you have to take legal action.