What is the limitation period for car insurance?

Verified 20 October 2025 - Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

The limitation period is the time you and the insurer have to take legal action in connection with an auto insurance contract. Once that period has elapsed, it is no longer possible to bring an action before a court: the action is declared inadmissible. We present you the information to know.

In the case of motor insurance, the limitation period is 2 years.

This means that you and the insurer have 2 years to take legal action from the event at the origin of the claim.

Example :

If you challenge a decision to refuse compensation received on March 12, 2025, the limitation period begins to run from that date.

So you have until March 12, 2027, to take legal action.

If your insurer claims an unpaid contribution due on June 1, 2025, the limitation period begins on that date.

The insurer therefore has until 1 June 2027 to initiate legal action.

The 2-year period starts in principle the day of the event which is the basis for the application.

In terms of car insurance, this usually corresponds to one of the following dates:

Date of loss (accident, theft, vandalism, etc.),
Date of the insurer's decision to refuse compensation
Date of legal action brought by a third party against the insured.

However, it can begin later in some special cases :

False declaration or omission on your part: if you have failed to declare an important item at the time of subscription, the period begins to run only when the insurer discovers this omission. For example, if the insurer discovers the omission on February 15, 2025, the 2-year period begins on that date, so the insurer has until February 15, 2027 to act.
Late discovery: if you have not immediately noticed a damage to your vehicle, the delay begins from the moment you became aware of it. For example, if you discover the disaster on April 20, 2025, the deadline expires on April 20, 2027.
Third-party redress: If another person is the victim of an accident related to your vehicle and takes action against you or is indemnified by your insurer, the limitation period begins to run from the third-party's action or its indemnification, and not from the date of the accident. For example, if you are responsible for an accident that occurred on January 5, 2025, but the victim is compensated by your insurer on March 10, 2025, the 2-year limitation period begins on March 10, 2025, until March 10, 2027.

These exceptions allow the rights to act to be retained when certain information is not immediately available or when a third party is involved.

Certain events have the effect of interrupting the limitation period. The already elapsed time is then canceled and a new 2-year period begins to run.

The main interrupting acts are as follows:

Legal action (subpoena, petition, etc.)

Appointment of an expert after a disaster

Sending a registered letter or email from the insurer to claim a premium
Sending a registered letter by the insured to request the payment of an indemnity.

The insurer must clearly inform you of the following points in the contract:

Applicable limitation period,
Starting point of this period,
Ways to interrupt it.

If these statements are absent or insufficient, the insurer cannot oppose the prescription. In other words, you will be able to act even after 2 years if you have not been properly informed.