Arizona Car Accident Laws Explained: Fault, Deadlines and What You Can Recover

Arizona Fault System: Pure Comparative Negligence

You can recover damages in Arizona even if you carry 99 percent of the blame. ARS 12-2505 directs juries to reduce your full damages in proportion to your own share of fault rather than dismiss your case outright.

Most states cut off recovery once an injured person crosses 50 or 51 percent fault. Arizona draws no such line.

One narrow exception applies. The statute strips away the right to comparative negligence from any claimant who intentionally, willfully, or wantonly caused the injury.

Insurance adjusters lean on this rule hard. They argue you sped, glanced at your phone, or braked late, because every percentage point shaves money off your check.

Evidence sets that percentage. These items carry the most weight in an Arizona crash investigation:

• The Arizona traffic crash report and any citations the officer issued

• Photos of vehicle damage, skid marks, debris, and road conditions

• Recorded statements from independent witnesses

• Traffic camera, dash cam, doorbell, or business surveillance video

• Event data recorder downloads showing speed, braking, and steering input

• Cell phone records covering the minutes around impact

• Medical records connecting your injuries to the forces of the collision

One caution on that first item. Under ARS 28-1599, a traffic ticket is not evidence of negligence in your injury case. It drives the insurance investigation, not the trial.

How Fault Percentages Change Your Compensation

The math stays simple. Start with your total damages, then subtract your fault share.

Picture a jury that values your claim at $100,000 and finds you 20 percent responsible for entering an intersection too fast. You take home $80,000. Raise that finding to 40 percent and you collect $60,000 instead.

Arguing over 10 or 15 percentage points therefore matters enormously in settlement talks.

Deadlines to File Your Arizona Injury Claim

Arizona gives you two years from the crash date to file your personal injury claim in court. ARS 12-542 sets this statute of limitations, and judges enforce it without sympathy.

Two years sounds generous. It rarely is. Surveillance footage overwrites itself in weeks, and insurers stall until the deadline squeezes you into a low offer.

A few circumstances move the clock. Injured minors generally get two years starting on their eighteenth birthday, and the discovery rule can delay the start date when an injury stays hidden.

The 180-Day Notice Rule for Government Accidents

A city bus, county truck, police cruiser, or state highway vehicle changes your entire timeline. ARS 12-821.01 requires you to serve a written notice of claim on the public entity within 180 days after your claim accrues, which is normally the crash date.

That notice must state facts supporting liability, name a specific dollar amount that would settle the case, and give the facts behind that amount. Serve it late or skip any element, and Arizona courts bar your claim permanently.

The deadlines stack, too. ARS 12-821 gives you one year, not two, to file suit against a public entity or employee. Read our guide to [filing a government vehicle claim.