These are the questions we field most often in the first phone call after a collision. The answers here are general. Your situation may turn on facts that change them.
How Long Do I Have To File a Claim in Arizona?
Two years from the date of injury for most personal injury lawsuits, under A.R.S. § 12-542.
If a city, county, school district, or state agency is involved, the clock is far shorter. A formal notice of claim is due within 180 days and suit must be filed within one year. Those government deadlines end more Arizona claims than anything else.
The Insurance Adjuster Says I Was Partly At Fault. Is My Claim Over?
No. Arizona is a pure comparative negligence state. Your recovery is reduced by your percentage of responsibility, but it is never barred, even at 90 percent. Adjusters raise shared fault because every point they assign you comes off the payout, which is why fault percentages are negotiated rather than calculated.
Do I have To Give the Other Driver’s Insurance Company a Recorded Statement?
No. You may have a duty to cooperate with your own carrier, which is a separate question, but you are not obligated to give a recorded statement to the opposing insurer. Our guide to handling adjuster calls explains what those requests are actually for.
I Felt Fine At The Scene. Should I Still See a Doctor?
Yes, within a day or two. Adrenaline masks pain, and inflammation from neck and back injuries builds over the following 24 to 72 hours. Head injuries are worse in this respect, since brain injury symptoms frequently surface days later.
A gap between the crash and the first medical visit is the most common argument an insurer makes against a claim.
What is My Case Worth?
Nobody can tell you honestly in the first week, because value depends on where your injury ends up rather than where it starts. The calculation includes medical bills, future treatment, lost wages, lost earning capacity, and the non economic losses that never generate a receipt.
Arizona places no statutory cap on any of it. The state constitution forbids the legislature from limiting damages for death or personal injury.
Should I Accept The First Offer?
Almost never, if you are still treating. Accepting closes the claim permanently. If you need surgery four months later, that becomes your expense.
How Long Will My Case Take?
Anywhere from a few months to a few years. Simple claims with clear liability often resolve in under a year. Cases requiring a lawsuit typically run eighteen months to three years. The breakdown of realistic case timelines covers where the time goes.
What If The Other Driver Had No Insurance?
Check your own policy for uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. Arizona requires insurers to offer it in writing, and many drivers carry it without realizing it. With 16,136 hit and run crashes statewide in 2024, this coverage matters more than most people assume.
Do I Have to Report The Crash?
Arizona requires you to stop, exchange information, render reasonable assistance, and notify law enforcement when there is injury, death, or significant property damage. Call regardless. A crash with no report is a crash the other driver can describe however they choose.
How Do I Get a Copy of The Crash Report?
It depends on which agency responded. Collisions inside city limits go through the Yuma Police records bureau. Crashes in unincorporated areas go through the Yuma County Sheriff. Minor highway collisions with no officer on scene can be filed through the DPS reporting tool.
Can I Still Recover if I Was Not Wearing a Seat Belt?
Often yes, though the defense will raise it to reduce your share. Statewide in 2025, 320 of the people killed in crashes were not using a safety device. Not wearing one does not bar a claim in Arizona, it becomes an argument about comparative fault.
What if the Crash Happened on the Job?
You may have both a workers compensation claim and a separate claim against the at fault driver. These run in parallel, and the compensation carrier will assert a lien against any third party recovery. Sorting out who else is responsible is the whole value of the second claim.
How Much Does a Lawyer Cost?
Nothing up front. Injury firms work on contingency fees, taking a percentage of the recovery and nothing if there is none. Arizona requires the full structure, including how case costs are handled, to be set out in a writing you sign before anything begins.
What if My Loved One Died in the Crash?
Arizona’s wrongful death statute controls who may bring the claim, generally the surviving spouse, children, parents, or the personal representative of the estate. The deadline usually runs two years from the date of death. Wrongful death claims should not be handled without counsel.
Should I Post About the Accident Online?
No. Defense investigators look, and a photograph of you at a family barbecue becomes an exhibit arguing your injuries are exaggerated. Set accounts to private and stop posting until the claim resolves.
What Should I Do Right Now?
Get medical care. Photograph everything. Collect witness contact information. Report the claim to your own insurer. Decline a recorded statement with the other carrier until you know the extent of your injuries. Keep every document. Our full checklist covers the first 48 hours in order.
Talk to an Arizona Injury Attorney
If your question is not answered here, ask it directly. Citrine Law represents injured people across Yuma County and southwestern Arizona and never insurance companies. We handle injury claims of every kind, including collision cases. The consultation is free and we are paid only if we recover for you, so reach out today.