How Long After An Accident Can You Claim Compensation In The UK?

By Olivia Newton. Last updated 21st June 2024. Welcome to our guide where we’ll address the question of “how long after an accident can you claim compensation?”.

You might not be aware that if you suffer because somebody else was negligent, you could be entitled to claim compensation for your injuries. You could claim for a workplace accident, a road traffic accident or an accident on holiday, amongst other things. What you might not realise is that there is a limitation period for making a claim which can vary depending on what type of claim you’re making. Therefore, in this guide, we’re going to answer the question, “How long after an accident can you claim?” As well as looking at the personal injury claims time limit, we’ll provide advice on what you can claim for and how much compensation you could receive.

Legal Expert can help you make your claim. We begin by offering free legal advice and a no-obligation assessment of your claim. Then, if your claim is suitable, we could introduce you to one of our No Win No Fee personal injury solicitors.

To discuss your claim right away and see how we can improve your experience of making legal proceedings, you can contact us on 0800 073 8804 today.  If you’d rather find out more about the different accident or injury claim time limits before calling, please continue reading.

Select A Section

• What Are Accident Claim Time Limits?
• What Date Does The Time Limit Start From?
• How Long Do You Have To Claim After Different Types Of Accidents?
• How Long Beyond The Three Year Limit Could I Claim?
• How Long After An Accident Outside The UK Could I Claim?
• Start Your Claim
• Essential Resources

What Are Accident Claim Time Limits?

If you’re wondering “how long after an accident can you claim compensation?” this section will outline some relevant legislation.

Accidents claim time limits in the UK are determined by the Limitation Act 1980. This is a statute of limitations which makes it clear, in law, how long a claimant has to begin their claim. Different types of claims have different time limits which makes it important that this is the first thing you check when considering a claim.

The reason time limits exist is to provide the defendant with some security that they won’t be sued for something that happened decades ago. However, as you’ll see in the next section, some cases can be made well after the accident occurred, in certain circumstances.

What Date Does The Time Limit Start From?

You might think that the personal injury claim time limit will begin on the date the accident occurred. In most cases that can be true, but in others, it can begin much later. That’s because you may not be aware of any injury or illness immediately after an accident. In such circumstances, time limits usually begin from the date you became aware of your injuries or the ‘date of knowledge’.

As an example, if you’re involved in an accident where you broke your leg, it’s probable that you’d know about it straight away. Therefore, the time limit would begin from the date of the accident. However, if you develop cancer because of exposure to asbestos in the workplace, you might not know about it until a doctor diagnoses your condition many years later. Therefore, your time limit would begin from the date the doctor diagnosed the condition.

If you’re wondering “how long after an accident can you claim compensation?” after a fatal accident, please see the next section.

How Long Do You Have To Claim After Different Types Of Accidents?

Generally, the time limit to start the personal injury claims process is three years from the date of the accident. However, there could be some exceptions to this. In the following sections, we examine how long after an accident can you claim in various circumstances.

How Long After A Fatal Accident Could You Claim Compensation?

The time limit to file a fatal accident claim is three years. This can be three years from the date your loved one died or three years from the date of an inquest or postmortem, otherwise known as the date of knowledge.

You should also be aware that only the estate can start a claim on the deceased’s behalf (for their pain and suffering, plus related expenses) for the first six months. After this point, the deceased’s dependents can start a claim for the impact the death had on them.

How Long After A Car Accident Could You Claim Compensation?

If you sustained injuries in a car crash, the general time limit for personal injury claims applies. This is three years from the date of the car accident. However, there are some exceptions to this, which we explain shortly.

How Long After A Criminal Injury Could You Claim Compensation?

The time limits for accident claims and criminal injury claims are generally different, depending on how you are claiming compensation. In some cases, you can file a criminal injury claim against a vicariously liable party. For those cases, the general three year limitation period applies.

However, if you are claiming through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), a different time limit applies. The CICA handle compensation claims for victims of violent crime in England, Scotland and Wales. The eligibility criteria for a CICA claim is different to that of a personal injury claim.

Generally, the time limit to claim through the CICA is two years from the date the incident took place. However, if you can prove exceptional circumstances prevented you from claiming within the two year time frame, you may be able to claim later on.

Children have a different time limit. For those under 18 at the time of the incident, they will have two years from the date of their 18th birthday to claim if the crime was reported to the police at the time it occurred. If the incident was not reported at the time and you can prove that exceptional circumstances prevented this, such as historical sexual abuse cases, then there will be two years from the date of reporting in which to start a claim.

How Long After An Accident Could You Claim Compensation For A Child?

If a child sustained injuries in an accident, the time limit is suspended until the date of their 18th birthday. The injured person will have three years from that date to begin a claim, if one was not started for them already.

At any point prior to turning 18, a litigation friend could claim on their behalf. A litigation friend could be appointed by the court, or a suitable person, such as a parent or guardian, could apply to act on the child’s behalf.

If you would like to know more about claiming on a child’s behalf, please visit our child accident claim guide.

How Long After An Accident Could You Claim Compensation For Someone With Diminished Mental Capacity?

For injured persons without the capacity to claim, the time limit is suspended. This suspension will last for as long as they are without this capacity. An injured person without the mental capacity to manage their own court case (with or without a solicitor) will require a litigation friend to act on their behalf.

However, if the injured person regains the mental capacity that is required to manage a court case, they will have three years from that date in which to launch their personal injury claim (if a litigation friend hasn’t already done so).

If you would like to find out if you are still within the limitation period, ask an advisor, ‘How long can I claim after an accident?’. They can help assess whether you are still within the time limit for personal injury claims.

How Long Beyond The Three Year Limit Could I Claim?

In general, the rules on the 3-year time limit for claiming personal injury compensation are quite clear. If you fail to make a claim on time, then your claim will be statute-barred and you won’t be compensated.

However, as discussed previously, there are some exceptions. To clarify, these are:

• A claim for a child accident can be made at any point before they turn 18. This requires an adult to represent them as their litigation friend.
• Claims for those with diminished mental capacity at the time of the accident don’t have a time limit. Again, the litigation friend process can be used.
• Criminal injury claims involving historical sexual abuse can be extended beyond the 2-year time limit usually applied to CICA claims.

If you’re in any doubt about whether your circumstances could allow you to make a claim outside of the normal time limits, please speak with an advisor regarding the question of “how long after an accident can you claim compensation?”. Our advisors will happily check for you so please give us a call.

How Long After An Accident Outside The UK Could I Claim?

If you’re injured while abroad, the time limits that apply to your claim might be different from those in the UK. For any holiday accident claim such as a cruise ship accident or accident on a flight, there are several different routes a claim could follow.

If you booked your holiday with a UK package holiday provider, then you could claim using UK legislation and have a 3-year time limit. Package holiday legislation can usually be applied if you purchased two or more key parts of your holiday, and paid for them at the same time, from a UK company. Claims could be made for injuries as well as illnesses like food poisoning. If you are injured or made ill on a package holiday, it’s important to let the company or your holiday rep know as soon as possible to give them the chance to remedy the situation themselves.

However, if you’ve booked your holiday independently, you may need to claim using local legislation. This means that the time limits and compensation amounts could be different from those in the UK. That said, we could still help you begin a claim. You’re not obliged to use a solicitor in the country where the accident happened. We could represent you and deal with any complex legal differences, so please get in touch if you’d like to discuss a claim or ask “how long after an accident can you claim compensation?”.

How long after an accident can you claim compensation? – Related FAQs

How long do I have to make a personal injury claim?

Personal injury claims typically have a 3-year time limit within which you must begin your claim if you wish to pursue compensation.

Can I make a personal injury claim after 3 years?

Some exceptions apply to this time limit, including for those who can’t claim for themselves.

What exceptions apply to the personal injury claims time limit?

Those who can’t claim for themselves, including those under 18 and those lacking the mental capacity to make legal proceedings, have their time limit frozen until they are able to do so.

Can I claim on behalf of a loved one?

Yes, you could assume the role of a ‘litigation friend’ in order to pursue compensation on behalf of a loved one that can’t claim for themselves.

How long do I have to make a criminal injury claim?

Criminal injury claims typically have a 2-year time limit within which you must begin your claim if you wish to pursue compensation.

How can a No Win No Fee agreement help?

No Win No Fee agreements can help you avoid paying out-of-pocket for legal help. This is because there are no upfront or hidden fees and you’ll only pay your lawyer if they win your compensation for you.

What can Legal Expert do for me?

Legal Expert offer claims management services, working alongside a panel of personal injury lawyers with over 30 years of experience. For a free consultation, please get in touch with our team of specialist advisors today.

How can I get in touch with Legal Expert?

Please see the next section for contact details.

Start Your Claim

Thanks for reading this guide answering the question “how long after an accident can you claim compensation?”. If you’ve decided that you’d like to begin a personal injury claim with us, then here are the best methods of contacting us:

• Call and speak with an advisor for free legal advice on 0800 073 8804
• Send an email with details of your claim to info@legalexpert.co.uk.
• Connect with an online advisor via our live chat facility.
• Finally, you could ask for a call back from an advisor by beginning your claim online.

We’ll start by offering a no-obligation consultation of your claim. Our advisor will listen to what happened, how you were injured and who was to blame. They’ll provide free advice about your options too. If your claim is strong enough, you could be introduced to a personal injury solicitor. Any claims our solicitors take on are handled on a No Win No Fee basis.

Essential References

Hopefully, this guide has answered the question, “How long after an accident can you claim?” As this is the last section, we’ve provided you with links to some more of our guides, plus other external resources that you might find helpful. If you need to know anything else, please feel free to contact a member of our team.

Accident At Work Time Limits – This guide looks at the time limits involved for personal injury claims linked to workplace accidents.

Whiplash Compensation Claims – Information on the time limits for claiming for whiplash following a road traffic accident.

Car Accident Claims – This guide looks at how long after a car accident you file a claim.

The Health And Safety At Work Act 1974 – Legislation that can be used to support claims for workplace accidents.

The Health And Safety Executive (HSE) – The HSE are responsible for enforcing various pieces of legislation regarding workplace safety.

Litigation Friends – Information from the government on the processes involved with becoming a litigation friend.

Thanks for reading our guide on “how long after an accident can you claim compensation?”.