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You’ve just been hit. Your hands are shaking. The other driver is walking toward your window. What you do in the next ten minutes, the next 48 hours, and the next two years will shape what a claim is worth. This guide walks through what to do after a car accident in Arizona, sequenced by the clock, with the Arizona statutes that govern each step.
This is general information about Arizona law, not legal advice for a specific case, and reading it doesn’t create an attorney-client relationship. If you want advice on a specific situation, call us for a free case review.
Before anything else, get safe. Move out of traffic if you can. Turn on hazards. If anyone is hurt, that’s the priority, not your bumper.
Once you’re safe, work through these steps in order.
In Arizona, drivers are legally required to report any crash that involves injury, death, or property damage over $2,000. That threshold comes from A.R.S. § 28-667. A modern car accident usually clears the $2,000 bar by the time you’ve replaced a fender and a headlight, so the practical rule is simple: call 911.
When officers arrive, they’ll generate a traffic crash report. That report becomes the spine of any future insurance claim or lawsuit. If you don’t call police and the other driver later changes their story, there’s no neutral record of what happened.
This is where good people hurt themselves. You’re rattled, the other driver is upset, and your instinct is to be polite. Don’t say “I’m sorry.” Don’t say “I didn’t see you.” Don’t say “I think I might have been going a little fast.”
Why this matters: Arizona uses pure comparative negligence under A.R.S. § 12-2505. Recovery gets reduced by the injured driver’s percentage of fault, even at 99% fault. The flip side is that any admission, even an offhand apology, can be used to push that fault percentage up. A 30% fault finding on a $100,000 claim reduces recovery by $30,000. Read more on Arizona’s pure comparative negligence rule before saying anything that can’t be taken back.
Tell the officer the facts you actually know: where you were going, what color the light was, what speed you were doing. Don’t guess. Don’t fill in blanks.
Get from the other driver:
Also note the names and badge numbers of every responding officer, and the report number they give you. You’ll need that number to pull the official crash report later. (Here’s how to get your Phoenix accident report once it’s processed.)
Arizona’s mandatory minimum liability limits are 25/50/15 (effective July 1, 2020, under the financial responsibility provisions of Title 28, Chapter 9): $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, and $15,000 for property damage. Some drivers carry only the minimum, and some drive uninsured. Write down whatever the other driver tells you, but assume their coverage may not be enough to cover serious injuries.
Photographs are evidence. Take a lot of them. Specifically:
If there are witnesses, get their names and phone numbers before they leave. Witnesses are valuable. They disappear fast.
Adrenaline masks pain. Soft-tissue injuries (whiplash, herniated discs, concussions) often don’t show up until 24 to 72 hours later. Get evaluated at the scene if EMTs offer, and go to an urgent care or ER the same day if possible.
Two reasons this matters. First, your health. A concussion missed in the first 24 hours can turn into months of post-concussive symptoms. Second, the claim. The other driver’s insurer will argue that any gap between the crash and the first doctor visit means the injuries weren’t real, or that they came from something else. A same-day medical record makes that argument much harder to win.
If you suspect a head injury, a Phoenix Brain Injury Lawyer can help you understand your options early.
Here’s what most people don’t realize: the other driver’s insurance adjuster will probably call within 24 to 48 hours of the crash. Sometimes faster. They’ll be friendly. They’ll sound concerned. They’ll say they just want to “get your side” or “wrap this up quickly.”
This is a important moments in the claim. The adjuster is calling that fast for a reason. They want to lock in a statement before the injured driver has seen a doctor, before the extent of injuries is known, and before an attorney is involved.
You are not legally required to give a recorded statement to the other driver’s insurance company. Ever.
The recorded statement isn’t being taken to help you. It’s being taken so that adjusters and defense attorneys can review it later for inconsistencies. You say “I’m doing okay” because you’re being polite. Three weeks later, when an MRI shows a herniated disc at L4-L5, that “I’m doing okay” becomes “claimant admitted she was not significantly injured.” That kind of language is then used to argue down the value of the claim.
The adjuster’s goal is to close the claim before the injured driver reaches maximum medical improvement (MMI), which is the point where doctors can finally say how badly someone is hurt and how long recovery will take. Settling before MMI means settling without knowing what the claim is actually worth. There’s more on that in our piece on evaluating an early settlement offer.
Keep it short. Something close to this:
“I got your message. I’m not going to give a recorded statement today. I’m still being treated by doctors. Please send any questions you have in writing. If I retain an attorney, I’ll have them contact you directly. What’s your direct line and claim number?”
Get their name, direct phone, and the claim number. Then end the call. That’s it. You haven’t been rude. You haven’t admitted anything. You haven’t waived any rights. You’ve just declined to be recorded, which is your right.
You DO have to notify your own insurance company, usually within a reasonable time and per your policy terms. Read the policy. Most require “prompt” notice.
When you call your own insurer, stick to the facts: where, when, what happened, who else was involved. You generally cooperate with your own insurer because that’s a contractual duty you signed up for. But “cooperate” doesn’t mean “speculate” or “guess at fault percentages.” Just the facts.
If the other driver was uninsured or underinsured, your own UM/UIM coverage may be the only meaningful source of recovery. Under A.R.S. § 20-259.01, Arizona insurers are required to offer uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage, and a driver can only reject it in writing. If you never signed a written rejection, you likely have UM/UIM, even if you don’t remember buying it. Pull your declarations page and check.
This is where claims get hurt. In the first week, three things commonly damage settlements.
1. Posting on social media. Defense attorneys subpoena social media. A photo at a kid’s birthday party two days after the crash can be characterized as “plaintiff appeared to be in good spirits and physically unrestricted.” Even a thumbs-up emoji on someone else’s post can be used. See why you should stay off social media after a crash for the longer version. The short version: lock down the accounts and stop posting until the claim is resolved.
2. Accepting an early settlement offer. If the other side’s insurer is offering money in the first two weeks, they’re doing it because they want to close the file before the full extent of injuries becomes clear. Once a release is signed, all future claims tied to that accident are extinguished, even if injuries get worse, even if surgery is needed six months later. The release is final. A practitioner’s rule of thumb: don’t sign a release before reaching MMI and knowing what ongoing medical care will cost.
3. Signing medical authorizations from the other driver’s insurer. They’ll send a HIPAA release and ask for a signature so they can “process the claim.” What they really want is access to a broad medical history, sometimes going back years, so they can argue that neck pain came from an old chiropractor visit and not from their insured rear-ending you on the 101.
You don’t have to sign their authorizations. Medical records will be produced in the normal course of the claim, through an attorney or through your own insurer, scoped to what’s actually relevant.
Most people don’t know this: Arizona insurers operate under regulatory deadlines for handling first-party claims. The Arizona Administrative Code rule on unfair claim settlement practices (A.A.C. R20-6-801), promulgated under the Department of Insurance’s authority in Title 20, generally requires insurers to:
If a claim is sitting in an adjuster’s inbox for 60 days with no response, that’s a problem. Sometimes it’s an oversight. Sometimes it’s a tactic. Either way, document every contact and every silence. Bad-faith claims start with paper trails.
You have 2 years from the date of the accident to file a personal injury lawsuit in Arizona. That’s set by A.R.S. § 12-542. Miss the deadline and the claim is gone, regardless of how badly someone was hurt or how clearly the other driver was at fault.
Two years sounds like a lot. It isn’t. Between medical treatment, reaching MMI, demand letters, and insurer negotiations, most personal injury claims need 12 to 18 months before they’re ready to file. Wait until month 23 to call an attorney and there may not be time to do the case justice. Read more on Arizona’s 2-year statute of limitations and the limited exceptions that can pause the clock (minors, government defendants, discovery rule).
If the claim is against a government entity (city bus, state vehicle, county employee on duty), the deadline is much shorter: 180 days to file a notice of claim under A.R.S. § 12-821.01. Government claims are their own world. Get help early.
Not every fender-bender needs an attorney. If a bumper is scratched and everyone walked away without symptoms, file the property damage claim and move on.
An attorney is worth calling when:
A free case review costs nothing and helps protect rights early. Our team works on contingency: no attorney’s fees unless we recover.
Legally, A.R.S. § 28-667 requires reporting any crash involving injury, death, or property damage over $2,000. Practically, $2,000 in damage covers most modern accidents. Call 911. The official crash report protects the injured driver if the other side changes their story later.
Not dead, but harder. The other side’s insurer will argue any gap between the crash and the first medical visit means there were no real injuries. If the same-day window is already missed, go today, and tell the doctor you’re being seen for crash-related symptoms. The sooner, the better.
You don’t have to call back at all, and you definitely don’t have to give a recorded statement. If you do call back, keep it short: name, claim number, and a clear statement that no recorded statement will be given and follow-up will go in writing or through an attorney.
Most claims resolve within 6 to 18 months. Claims that reach maximum medical improvement quickly tend to resolve faster. Claims involving surgery, disputed liability, or trial can take 2 to 3 years. The 2-year statute of limitations under A.R.S. § 12-542 sets the outer edge for filing suit.
Then your own uninsured motorist (UM) coverage often becomes the primary source of recovery. Under A.R.S. § 20-259.01, Arizona insurers must offer UM/UIM coverage and can only exclude it if the driver rejected it in writing. Pull the declarations page and check. If UM is on the policy, there’s a claim, even if the other driver has nothing.
Usually not, and not without an evaluation. First offers are commonly made before the injured driver has reached maximum medical improvement, which means they’re made before anyone knows the full extent of injuries or future medical needs. Once the release is signed, all future claims tied to the accident are extinguished, even if injuries worsen. Get an evaluation before signing anything.
If you’ve been in a crash in Arizona, an early conversation can shape how the next two years go. We’ll walk through what the claim looks like, what to expect from the adjuster, and what comes next. Free case review. No attorney’s fees unless we recover.
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By Jared J. Pehrson | Impact Legal Car Accident Attorneys
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