How Long Do I Have to Make a Claim in Alberta?

You have two years from the date you knew, or should have known, about your injury to sue the driver responsible. That deadline comes from Alberta's Limitations Act, and it applies whether you were driving, riding as a passenger or hit as a pedestrian or cyclist.

What is the deadline to sue after a car accident in Alberta?

Two years. The clock starts on the date you knew, or in the circumstances ought to have known, that the injury happened and who caused it, not necessarily the day of the crash itself. Miss that window and the driver you would have sued can use the Act itself as a defence, which ends the claim no matter how strong it was.

Is there a final cutoff even if I did not notice the injury right away?

Yes. Ten years after the crash, regardless of what you knew or when you knew it. That is the outer limit the Act sets, and whichever of the two deadlines arrives first is the one that governs your claim.

What if I am claiming benefits from my own insurer instead of suing?

That is a separate track called Section B benefits, and it runs alongside the two-year lawsuit deadline rather than replacing it. It has its own shorter dates, from your first notice to the insurer through to the forms for disability benefits. Those are covered fully on our Alberta Section B Accident Benefit Deadlines page. If you have not yet reported the crash itself, our Alberta reporting deadline page is the place to start.

What happens if I keep no record while the clock runs?

Two years sounds like plenty of room, and it goes fast once appointments, forms and a return to work fill it in. An insurer or a court asking what happened in week three or month five expects dates, not memory. The record you build now is what either one measures your claim against later.

The Alberta MVA Companion Guide is built around these Alberta-specific dates, and it pairs with the National MVA Recovery Guide, which covers the recovery record that matters everywhere in Canada.

If your recovery were reviewed tomorrow, what would your record say?

The National MVA Recovery Guide is where your recovery gets documented, day by day. Symptoms, appointments, calls and costs, written while they are fresh. It works in every province and it stands on its own.

See the National Guide$39

Both guides, $49. Add the Alberta MVA Companion Guide for the dates and rules that shape your recovery in Alberta, and the discount applies at checkout. Normally $63.99.

Every figure on this page comes from a named authority. How we check
Last verified: September 2026.