Quick Answer: You have three years to make a personal injury claim in the UK, counted from the date of the accident or from the date you first knew your injury was linked to someone else’s fault — whichever is later. This limitation period is set by section 11 of the Limitation Act 1980, and once it expires the court will usually refuse to hear your claim at all. Important exceptions apply for children, people who lack mental capacity, criminal injury claims (two years) and accidents abroad — so the safest approach is always to start early.
How long do you have to make a personal injury claim in the UK?
The standard personal injury claim time limit in the UK is three years. It runs from the date of the accident, or from your “date of knowledge” if you only discovered the injury and its cause later, under section 11 of the Limitation Act 1980. This three-year rule covers the overwhelming majority of personal injury claims, from car crashes to falls at work to clinical errors.
The key technical point is that court proceedings must be issued within three years — not merely started, discussed or notified to an insurer. Sending a letter to the other side does not stop the clock; only formally issuing a claim form at court does. Your claim does not have to be finished within three years, just properly issued.
Courts treat the deadline strictly, so the three years should be seen as a backstop, not a target. Evidence fades quickly: CCTV is routinely deleted within weeks, witnesses move on, and medical records become harder to piece together. The earlier you act, the stronger your claim tends to be.
What is the date of knowledge rule and when does it apply?
The date of knowledge rule means your three years can start later than the accident itself — on the day you first knew you had a significant injury attributable to someone else’s act or omission. It is defined in section 14 of the Limitation Act 1980 and exists because many injuries, particularly illnesses, are not obvious straight away. It applies most often to industrial disease and medical negligence claims, where decades can pass between exposure or error and diagnosis.
In practice, your date of knowledge is usually the date of diagnosis or the date a doctor first connected your condition to its cause. Conditions such as asbestosis, mesothelioma, industrial deafness and vibration white finger frequently surface 20 to 40 years after the workplace exposure that caused them. The law does not punish you for not knowing — but once you do know, the three-year clock starts running.
Based on our case file from 2023, a retired Midlands foundry worker claimed successfully more than 25 years after leaving the job that damaged his hearing. He was diagnosed with noise-induced hearing loss in 2022, his date of knowledge was the audiology report linking it to unprotected foundry work in the 1990s, and the claim — issued well within three years of that diagnosis — settled for a five-figure sum.
What are the time limits for different types of claim?
Most claim types follow the three-year rule, but several important exceptions exist — including a shorter two-year limit for criminal injury compensation and potentially much shorter limits for accidents abroad. The variations come from different statutes and schemes sitting alongside the Limitation Act 1980, such as the CICA scheme and foreign limitation laws. The table below summarises the position for the nine most common situations we see.
| Type of claim | Time limit | Clock starts from |
|---|---|---|
| Road traffic accident | 3 years | Date of the accident |
| Accident at work | 3 years | Date of the accident |
| Medical negligence | 3 years | Date of negligence or date of knowledge |
| Industrial disease | 3 years | Date of knowledge (usually diagnosis) |
| Criminal injury (CICA) | 2 years | Date of the incident |
| Accident abroad | Varies — often shorter | Local law or carrier convention (can be under 1 year) |
| Children (under 18) | 3 years from 18th birthday | Clock paused until age 18 — deadline is the 21st birthday |
| Person lacking mental capacity | No limit while incapacity lasts | 3 years from recovery of capacity, if it returns |
| Fatal claims | 3 years | Date of death or family’s date of knowledge |
Three of these traps catch people out repeatedly, so treat the following as red-flag deadlines:
- Criminal injuries: the CICA scheme allows only two years, not three — a full year less than most people assume.
- Accidents abroad: foreign limitation periods apply and some are under twelve months; air and sea carrier claims have their own conventions with two-year limits.
- Time limit medical negligence claim confusion: the three years runs from when you knew the treatment caused harm, which is often later than the treatment date — but do not rely on that without advice.
For life-changing injuries — brain, spinal or multiple trauma — the same three-year rule applies, but a serious injury claim should be started as early as possible so interim payments can fund rehabilitation long before final settlement.
Can children claim after the 3-year limit?
Yes — children can claim after the standard three-year limit because their clock does not start until their 18th birthday. Section 28 of the Limitation Act 1980 pauses limitation for anyone under 18, so a child injured at any age has until their 21st birthday to issue proceedings. A child hurt at age five, for example, still has a full sixteen years before the deadline arrives.
Before 18, a parent or guardian can claim on the child’s behalf at any time by acting as a “litigation friend”. This is usually the better route: evidence is fresh, witnesses are traceable, and any settlement is approved by a court and held safely until the child turns 18. Waiting until adulthood is legally possible but practically risky.
The same protective logic applies to adults who lack mental capacity. For them, the limitation clock does not run at all while the incapacity continues — and if capacity never returns, no limitation deadline ever applies to their claim.
What happens if you miss the time limit?
If you miss the deadline, your claim becomes “statute-barred” and the defendant gains a complete defence — meaning the court will normally strike the claim out regardless of how strong the underlying case is. The only general escape route is section 33 of the Limitation Act 1980, which gives the court discretion to allow a late claim where it is fair to do so. That discretion is real but exercised cautiously, so it should never be relied on as a plan.
When deciding a section 33 application, the court weighs factors such as the length of the delay, the reasons for it, how badly the delay damages the evidence, and how quickly you acted once you knew you could claim. Short delays with good explanations and intact evidence stand a far better chance than long, unexplained ones. Genuine ignorance of an injury usually goes through the date-of-knowledge route instead, which is stronger.
In our internal data, roughly one in eight enquiries reaches us within six months of the limitation deadline — and a late enquiry is not the same as a lost claim. An experienced team can check your true limitation date, assess date-of-knowledge arguments and, where needed, issue protective proceedings quickly. If a previous adviser let your deadline lapse, our dispute resolution team can also advise on recovering your losses through a professional negligence claim.
How do I start a claim before the deadline runs out?
The fastest way to protect your position is to get a free claim check now, so your exact limitation date is confirmed before any more time passes. Working out the deadline takes a specialist a matter of minutes, while leaving it unchecked risks losing the claim entirely under section 11. Starting early also preserves the evidence that ultimately decides how much compensation you receive.
To put yourself in the strongest position, gather these basics as soon as you can:
- The date of the accident — or the date of your diagnosis, if the injury emerged later
- Any medical records, GP visits or hospital letters connected to the injury
- Photos, CCTV requests, accident book entries and witness names
- Details of the other party: driver, employer, occupier or treatment provider
- Records of your financial losses — lost earnings, travel, care and treatment costs
Once instructed, your solicitor will notify the defendant, secure evidence and issue proceedings in good time — and if the deadline is close, protective proceedings can be issued first to stop the clock while the claim is built properly. Nothing about acting early commits you to going to court; most claims settle without a hearing.
Not sure if you’re still in time? Check today — for free. May I Claim will confirm your limitation date and tell you honestly whether you have a claim, with no obligation and no pressure. Three years passes faster than most people expect, so start your free claim check with May I Claim now and put the deadline question to rest.
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