Hurt by a city vehicle, a sidewalk or public property in Glendale or Los Angeles County: how does the 6-month claim work?

Our personal injury page notes that claims against a government entity have a far shorter window than the usual two years. This page gives the actual deadlines from the Government Claims Act and the offices that take claims in Glendale and Los Angeles County. The same rules apply whether the injury came from a city bus or truck, a dangerous road or sidewalk, or a fall in a public building.

How does a claim against a public agency work, step by step?

1. Identify the agency. A city street or city vehicle points to the city, a county facility to the county, and a state highway to Caltrans. When more than one agency may be involved, each gets its own claim.
2. Gather the facts. Date, exact place, what happened, the employees or vehicles involved, and your injuries and treatment so far.
3. Present the claim within six months. Use the agency's form if it has one, sign it, and keep proof of the date you delivered or mailed it (Gov. Code 911.2).
4. Watch for a defect notice. If the agency thinks the claim is incomplete, it may send a written notice of the defects within 20 days, and it cannot act on the claim for 15 days after that notice (section 910.8).
5. The agency decides. It has 45 days to act, unless both sides agree in writing to extend; silence counts as a rejection (section 912.4).
6. The lawsuit deadline starts. After a written rejection, you have six months from the date it was delivered or mailed to sue; with no written notice, the limit is two years from the date the claim accrued, usually the day of the injury (section 945.6).
7. The case is filed where the injury happened. The Superior Court's filing rules send injury and dangerous-condition cases to the courthouse for the district where the injury occurred.

What are the deadlines for a claim against a public agency?

A lawsuit for money damages generally cannot be filed until the claim has been presented and either acted on or deemed rejected (Government Code section 945.4). That is why the six-month claim is the deadline that matters most.

Where do I file a claim in Glendale and Los Angeles County?

The claim goes to the public agency you believe is responsible, so the first job is to identify it. Our page on the personal injury lawyer in Glendale covers the Glendale police collision reports and the City Clerk's claim office.

Glendale's claim form prints the warning in capital letters: claims for personal injury or property damage must be filed no later than 6 months after the occurrence. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors page says the same. For injuries elsewhere in the county, our page on the personal injury lawyer in Los Angeles County gathers the other claim offices, crash report agencies and courthouses.

What must the claim include?

Government Code section 910 lists what a claim must show: your name and address, where notices should be sent, the date, place and circumstances of the incident, a general description of the injury or loss, the names of the public employees involved if known, and the amount claimed if it is under $10,000. If the claim is for more than $10,000, no dollar amount is stated; the claim instead says whether it would be a limited civil case, which under Code of Civil Procedure section 85 means $35,000 or less in controversy.

The City of Glendale's form goes further. It asks why you believe the city is responsible, the exact address or cross streets, the city employee or department involved, whether police or paramedics were called, your doctors and hospitals, vehicle and insurance details for crashes, witnesses, and a diagram of the scene. Both pages must be signed under penalty of perjury, and the form warns that presenting a false claim is a felony (Penal Code section 72). Our list of what to bring to a personal injury consultation doubles as a checklist for gathering this information.

What happens after the claim is filed?

The agency has 45 days to act, unless both sides agree in writing to extend that time (section 912.4). If it does nothing, the claim is treated as rejected on the last day. If it sends a written rejection, the six-month period to sue begins (section 945.6). For the City of Los Angeles, the City Clerk's page explains that after filing, the claim is handled by the City Attorney's Claims Division. A lawsuit is filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court; our guide to a civil case at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse explains which courthouse takes which cases and the early court deadlines.

What if the six months have already passed?

You can apply to the agency for leave to present a late claim, but the application must be made within a reasonable time and no more than one year after the cause of action accrued, must explain the delay, and must attach the proposed claim (section 911.4). The agency must grant it in the situations listed in section 911.6(b): a delay through mistake, inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect that did not prejudice the agency, an injured person who was a minor or was physically or mentally incapacitated, or an injured person who died before the six months ran. If the agency denies the application, the only route left is a petition to the Superior Court within six months of the denial (section 946.6), and the denial notice must warn you of that deadline (section 911.8). A late claim application is a narrow path, so it is better not to rely on it.

The same claim rules apply when the injury involves a public employee in the course of their work, including a bite by a police dog, although California's dog bite statute has special limits for police work. We explain those limits in our guide to who is responsible for a dog bite in California.

What changes the answer?

A public vehicle

Vehicle Code section 17001 makes a public entity liable for death or injury caused by an employee's negligent operation of a motor vehicle within the scope of employment. The claim still comes first. The crash itself is handled like any other, and our guide to what to do after a crash in Glendale covers the police report and the DMV form.

A dangerous condition of public property

For a broken sidewalk, a hidden road hazard or an unsafe public building, Government Code section 835 requires proof that the property was in a dangerous condition, that the condition caused the injury and created a foreseeable risk of that kind of injury, and that either a public employee created it or the agency had notice in time to fix it. Under section 835.2, notice can be actual, or constructive when the condition existed long enough and was obvious enough that a reasonable inspection system would have found it. Photos taken early, before repairs, often matter most.

A child or an incapacitated person

When the injured person was a minor or was physically or mentally incapacitated, section 911.6 requires the agency to grant a late claim application, subject to timing limits when the condition ended during the six months.

A death

A claim is also required before suing an agency for a death. Our page on wrongful death and survival claims in California explains who may bring those claims.

A worked example

For example, imagine a hypothetical cyclist in Glendale who is struck on March 10 by a city-owned maintenance truck turning across a bike lane. Police come to the scene. Her wrist is broken, and her treatment is expected to last months.

Because the truck belongs to the city and its driver was working, Vehicle Code section 17001 can make the city responsible, but she cannot sue until she presents a claim. Her six months run to September 10, whether or not her treatment is finished. She files on the City of Glendale's form at the City Clerk's Office in June, keeps a date-stamped copy, and states that the claim is not a limited civil case rather than naming a dollar figure, because it is likely to exceed $10,000.

If the city mails a written rejection in July, she has six months from the mailing date to sue. If the city never responds, the claim is deemed rejected after 45 days, and with no written notice the limit becomes two years from the crash. Either way, the claim only preserves her right to sue; whether the city is responsible, and for how much, is a separate question.

Common mistakes people make with government claims

• Waiting until treatment ends. The six months run from when the claim accrued, usually the day of the injury, not from the last doctor's visit.
• Sending the claim to the wrong agency. City, county and state roads look alike; file with every agency that may be responsible.
• Emailing a City of Los Angeles claim. The City Clerk does not accept email or fax.
• Treating insurance calls as a claim. Talking to an adjuster or a city department is not the written claim the statute requires.
• Missing the second deadline. After a written rejection, the time to sue is only six months.
• Not keeping proof of filing. A date-stamped copy or mailing receipt settles any argument about timing.

What to do this week

1. Write down the date, time and exact location, and photograph the vehicle, hazard or scene before it changes.
2. Count six months from the date of the injury and put that date on your calendar.
3. Identify every agency that may own the vehicle, road or property.
4. Get the agency's claim form and fill in every field, including witnesses and treatment.
5. Deliver or mail the claim and keep proof of the date.
6. Save every letter the agency sends, with the envelope, and note the date each one arrives.

Frequently asked questions

Does the six-month rule apply to a child's injury?

The claim is still due within six months, but section 911.6 requires the agency to grant a late claim application when the injured person was a minor during that time, subject to the one-year limit and timing rules in that section.

What if the agency never answers my claim?

The claim is deemed rejected after 45 days (section 912.4). Without a written rejection notice, section 945.6 allows two years from accrual to sue, but it is safer to act well before then.

The agency got my late claim and did not send it back. Does that help?

Possibly. Under section 911.3, if the agency does not return a late claim with the required notice within 45 days, it waives the defense that the claim was late, unless the claim gave no address for notices.

Do I need a lawyer to file the claim?

No. Section 910 allows the claimant or someone acting on the claimant's behalf to present it. Because the claim frames the later lawsuit, many people have a lawyer review it first.

Is the claim the same as a lawsuit?

No. It is a required first step. If the claim is rejected, the lawsuit is a separate filing in the Superior Court with its own deadline.

Which courthouse hears the lawsuit?

The court's filing rules list the location where the bodily injury occurred for personal injury and dangerous condition cases, so an injury in Glendale is filed in the district that covers Glendale.

How can Glendale Law help?

We identify the responsible agency, prepare and present the claim, track the response deadlines, and file suit when a claim is rejected. For crashes with a city or county vehicle, our auto accident page explains how those cases proceed. Because the first deadline is only six months, it helps to call early. Reach our Glendale office at (818) 244-9000 or request a consultation.