Truck Accident Statute of Limitations in Pennsylvania

In Pennsylvania, the statute of limitations for a truck accident injury claim is generally 2 years from the date of the crash, and wrongful death claims run on a separate 2 years clock. If a government vehicle or entity was involved, a claim notice of roughly 180 days applies first — and missing that notice usually bars the claim regardless of the other deadlines. Pennsylvania's 2 years is among the shortest in the country. In practice that means the legal clock and the evidence clock sit unusually close together, and waiting to see how an injury develops is riskier here than in almost any other state.

Two years from the date of death. In Pennsylvania the injury and death periods are the same length (2 years) — but they do not necessarily start on the same day: the death clock generally runs from the date of death rather than the date of the crash.

Written notice to the government unit is required within six months of the injury. Pennsylvania's 180-day notice window is within the usual range, though it still expires long before the ordinary deadline does.

Tolled during minority; the two years begin at the 18th birthday. If the injured person was under 18, the clock in Pennsylvania is generally paused until their 18th birthday. The evidence is not paused, and in many cases the government notice is not either.

Concretely: in Pennsylvania the ordinary legal window is roughly 4 times longer than the six months federal law requires driver logs to be kept. Someone injured here can be 2 years from their filing deadline and weeks from losing the proof that would carry the case. Federal rules require motor carriers to retain driver Records of Duty Status for six months. Dashcam and telematics data typically overwrite within 30 days, and engine control module data has no retention requirement at all.

In Pennsylvania the personal injury period is 2 years. Nearby: New York 3 years, Ohio 2 years, New Jersey 2 years, Maryland 3 years. That matters more than it looks in trucking cases, because interstate freight crosses state lines as a matter of routine — the driver, the carrier, the trailer and the crash can sit in four different states, and which state's law governs can change the deadline. If you were hit far from home, get that question answered early.