Summary:
Florida reduced the limitations period for most negligence lawsuits from four years to two for claims arising after March 24, 2023. Medical treatment and insurance negotiations can consume much of that period, while the statutory deadline continues to approach. Injured Floridians should be aware of the shorter window for preserving a negligence claim.
Florida used to give many people four years to bring a negligence lawsuit. Since March, 2023, that period has been cut in half for negligence claims arising after the law took effect. Two years may sound generous when you’re looking at the calendar right after an accident. It can feel very different after months of doctor visits, missed work, insurance paperwork, and no firm answer about how fully you’ll recover.
Treatment Can Eat Up a Lot of the Calendar
Some injuries take time to reveal their full impact. A person hurt in a car crash may spend months in physical therapy before learning that injections or surgery could be recommended. Someone injured in a fall may return to work, struggle with persistent pain, and require additional testing later.
Those medical developments can be important to a personal injury claim, but the legal deadline keeps approaching while treatment continues. Florida law currently provides a two-year limitations period for an action founded on negligence. Waiting for treatment to end can leave far less time to address the legal side of an injury than someone expected.
Insurance Negotiations Do Not Stop the Clock
Insurance negotiations can take months. An adjuster may request records, evaluate medical expenses, challenge part of a claim, or continue exchanging settlement proposals. Those discussions can make it feel as though the claim is safely moving through the system.
The statute of limitations follows its own schedule. Ongoing settlement discussions do not automatically extend the two-year period. If the applicable deadline expires before a lawsuit is properly commenced, the injured person can lose the ability to pursue the claim in court.
That consequence is especially frustrating when someone has spent a year or longer cooperating with an insurer and believed the process was progressing.
Two Years Leaves Less Margin for Delay
Florida lawmakers reduced the limitations period for general negligence cases from four years to two as part of HB 837. The change applies to causes of action accruing after the law’s March 24, 2023 effective date.
For injured Floridians, medical recovery, insurance negotiations, and legal deadlines may all be moving at the same time. Keeping track of that deadline can protect options while the extent of an injury and its financial consequences are still developing.
Protect the Time You Have
A two-year window can disappear quickly when your days are already filled with treatment, work disruptions, and insurance demands. Feldman Legal Group can discuss the circumstances of a Florida personal injury claim and any applicable deadlines. Reach out to learn what options may be available in your situation.
FAQ: Florida Personal Injury Deadline
How long do I have to bring a negligence lawsuit in Florida?
Florida generally provides two years for an action founded on negligence, although the applicable deadline can depend on the type of claim and its specific circumstances.
Does ongoing medical treatment extend the two-year deadline?
Continuing treatment doesn’t automatically extend the statutory period. Someone may still be receiving care when the deadline approaches.
Can insurance negotiations extend the deadline?
Settlement discussions with an insurer do not automatically pause or extend the limitations period. The legal deadline should be considered separately from the progress of an insurance claim.
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