A serious motorcycle crash in New Hampshire changes everything in an instant. One moment you’re zipping down the Kanc; the next, you are dealing with surgeries, rehabilitation, missed paychecks, and a level of pain you never expected to face. In the middle of all that, the last thing on your mind is a legal deadline. But in New Hampshire, that deadline determines whether you ever get the chance to hold the at-fault driver accountable.
You’ll have more peace of mind if you have an experienced personal injury lawyer to remember important deadlines for you and fight for fair compensation as you recover. The skilled New Hampshire personal injury lawyers of Tenn And Tenn, P.A. will track every deadline, gather evidence while it is still fresh, and work hard to ensure that your settlement reflects the true cost of what you have lost. Call Tenn And Tenn, P.A. today at 888-332-5855 or schedule a free online consultation. We represent clients throughout New Hampshire, including Laconia, Portsmouth, Manchester, and beyond.
Three Years From the Date of the Crash
New Hampshire’s general statute of limitations for personal injury claims gives injured riders three years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit. This three-year window applies to motorcycle accidents, car crashes, truck collisions, and most other negligence-based injury claims.
The clock usually starts ticking on the day of the crash. Filing an insurance claim does not stop or pause that clock, nor does realizing the full extent of your injuries at a later date. Only filing an actual lawsuit in court protects your legal right to recover compensation. If three years pass without a lawsuit being filed, unless you fall into a narrow exception, the court will almost certainly dismiss the case.
Why This Matters More With Severe Injuries
Severe motorcycle injuries, including things like traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, multiple fractures, or road rash requiring skin grafts, often involve long recovery timelines. You may spend months focused on your surgeries, physical therapy, or simply getting through each day with as little pain as possible. It’s easy to lose track of how much time has passed since the crash.
The problem is that the full extent of a severe injury is not always clear right away. You might feel as if you’re improving, then discover months or years later that a brain injury has caused lasting cognitive changes, or that a spinal injury has led to chronic pain that will never fully resolve. This is why understanding the timeline early on matters so much.
The Discovery Rule Exception
New Hampshire law recognizes that not every injury, or its connection to someone else’s conduct, is obvious right away. Under the discovery rule built into the New Hampshire statute of limitations law, if an injury and its cause could not reasonably have been discovered at the time of the crash, the three-year period instead begins running from the date the injury and its connection to the crash were discovered or reasonably should have been discovered. This exception tends to come up more often in cases involving delayed-onset conditions, but it is definitely worth discussing with an experienced New Hampshire personal injury attorney any time your injuries worsen well after the accident itself.
Other Exceptions to the Deadline
A few other circumstances can shift how much time you have to file a claim:
Minors. If you were under 18 at the time of the crash, the statute of limitations is generally tolled until you turn 18, after which you typically have two years to file a claim.
Incapacitation. If you are legally unable to pursue a claim because of a mental incapacity, the clock can be tolled until that incapacity is resolved.
Claims against a city or town. If a government entity’s vehicle, road defect, or maintenance failure contributed to the crash, different and much shorter rules apply. You should provide written notice of a potential claim within 60 days of the injury, a fraction of the standard three-year window.
Talk to the Motorcycle Accident Lawyers at Tenn And Tenn, P.A.
Even with three years on paper, waiting is rarely a good strategy. It’s too easy for evidence to be destroyed or fade, and for witnesses to forget details. Insurance companies are also notorious for using delay to their advantage. In severe injury cases, there is also more to untangle: multiple insurance policies, long-term medical projections, lost future earning capacity, and sometimes claims against more than one at-fault party. All of that takes time to build properly.
If you or someone you love has been seriously injured in a New Hampshire motorcycle accident, talk to the experienced personal injury attorneys of Tenn And Tenn, P.A. as soon as possible. We can. Help you understand the deadlines, your options, and how we can protect your right to compensation. Call us today at 888-332-5855 or fill out our online form to schedule a free consultation. We’ve fought for countless injured clients across New Hampshire, including in Dover, Rochester, Nashua, and more. We want to fight for you, too.Injured in a NH rider accident? Learn how the New Hampshire 3-year statute of limitations applies to severe motorcycle injuries and when exceptions apply.
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