The general rule: two years, unless a vehicle was involved
Under C.R.S. § 13-80-102, most Colorado personal injury claims — slip and falls, premises liability, general negligence — must be filed within two years. But motor vehicle accidents get a genuinely longer window: three years, under C.R.S. § 13-80-101(1)(n), covering drivers, passengers, cyclists, and pedestrians alike. This distinction trips people up constantly — assuming the shorter two-year rule applies to a vehicle claim costs nothing, but assuming the longer three-year rule applies to a non-vehicle injury can end a claim a full year early.
Medical malpractice: two years, with a real catch
Medical malpractice claims get two years from discovery of the injury, under C.R.S. § 13-80-102.5(1). But there's a separate statute of repose — a hard outer limit of three years from the date of the malpractice itself, regardless of when the injury was actually discovered. In other words, a malpractice claim can be barred by the repose period even if the injury genuinely wasn't discoverable within that window, with certain narrow exceptions defined in the same statute.
Government claims: a much shorter 182-day notice
Before suing a Colorado government entity, formal notice must generally be given within just 182 days of the incident, under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act (C.R.S. § 24-10-109). This is considerably shorter than either the two-year or three-year general rule, and missing it can bar the claim before a lawsuit is ever filed. See our full guide to Colorado's government notice requirement.
Wrongful death: two years, or four if the driver fled
A wrongful death claim generally must be filed within two years of the date of death. There's a genuinely distinctive exception: when the death resulted from vehicular homicide and the responsible driver left the scene, the deadline extends to four years, under C.R.S. § 13-80-102(2).
When the clock doesn't start on the injury date
See our guide to Colorado's discovery rule and tolling for how the clock can start later than the injury date itself, and for how minors are protected.