That is one of the biggest mistakes injury victims make, and it can be a very expensive one. Florida gives most negligence victims only two years from the date of the injury to file a lawsuit. That deadline applies to many car crashes, truck accidents, motorcycle wrecks, pedestrian injuries, and slip-and-fall claims. If you wait too long, your case can be gone before it ever starts.  The clock usually starts on the day you were hurt.

The insurance companies do not need to finish their review before the legal deadline expires. Therefore, your treatment does not pause the statute. You should not assume a claim is safe just because somebody told you they were “working on it”. In many cases, delay is exactly what hurts injured people the most.

• Claims Against the Government: For most personal injury claims against a state or local government agency, you have three years to file a formal claim. 
   
• Delayed Discovery (Medical Malpractice): In medical malpractice cases, Florida law applies the "discovery rule," giving you two years from the date the injury was discovered (or reasonably should have been discovered). However, this is capped by a strict four-year statute of repose, meaning your claim cannot be filed more than four years after the actual medical incident occurred.
   
• Injuries to Minors: If the victim is a minor, the statute of limitations is often tolled (paused) or extended, typically granting extra time until the child reaches a certain age of majority. 
   
• Pre-HB 837 Incidents: If your injury occurred before March 24, 2023, you may still fall under the prior law, which granted victims four years to file a negligence claim.

If your crash involved a vehicle, there is another issue to be aware of.

Florida’s PIP system is still in place, which means the 14-day treatment rule still matters.  If you do not seek the right medical care fast enough, you can lose benefits. Many injured people have unfortunately had to learn that lesson after their medical bills started arriving.

Additionally, the way injury cases are won has changed.

Modern claims are built on evidence that can disappear quickly, especially when that evidence is procured through smartphone photos, dashcam footage, surveillance video, medical records, text messages, app data, and social media posts. 

If you do not preserve that evidence right away, the other side will often benefit from the missing pieces. Insurance companies know this, which is why they often move fast, ask for recorded statements, and try to get you talking before you understand the value of your claim. What might sound like a routine phone call can actually be a strategy to reduce their liability and the claim amount.

The first few days after an injury are the most critical and important.

For anyone who becomes injured in an accident, the most important steps immediately following the incident are to seek medical care immediately and to consult with an injury lawyer.  

Additional recommendations would be to preserve every photo and message related to the incident, save any and all witness information you can obtain, and avoid posting details about your condition online!

You should also avoid signing any paperwork or giving any kind of statement to the insurance company without the direction and advice of your lawyer.  Once you say something, it can be used later, often times in ways that are detrimental to a victim's case, and also difficult to reverse.

Florida injury claims are more technical, more time-sensitive, and more evidence-driven than ever. If you were injured, you should not delay taking action.

At Fernandez Law Group, we help injured people move quickly, protect the evidence, and stay ahead of the deadlines and insurance tactics that can destroy an otherwise strong case. 

If you were hurt in an accident, now is the time to take advantage of our free consultation and detailed case evaluation.