Hit by a County or City Vehicle? Talk to Our Team Today

If you were hurt in a car accident with a county or city vehicle in Georgia, the rules are different from an ordinary crash. You must give the government written notice of your claim within a set deadline. For a city vehicle, that deadline is six months. This page explains how these claims work, what they can cover, and why timing matters. T. Madden & Associates, P.C. handles these claims, and Terance Madden is the responsible lawyer.

What a Car Accident Claim Against a County or City Vehicle Is

A car accident claim against a county or city vehicle is an injury or wrongful death claim. It arises from a crash with a vehicle owned or driven for a Georgia county, city or consolidated government.

These crashes commonly involve:

• Police cruisers
• Sanitation trucks
• Public works and road crew trucks
• Buses operated by transit agencies or school districts generally fall outside the city and county rules described here and may follow different immunity and notice rules.
• Fire and EMS units

Injured drivers, passengers, pedestrians and cyclists can bring these claims. Under Georgia’s wrongful death statutes, the right to sue follows a set order: a surviving spouse, then children, then parents, then the personal representative (O.C.G.A. §§ 51-4-2, 51-4-4, 51-4-5). Government drivers are often employees doing their jobs. When a local government employee was driving a covered motor vehicle within the scope of employment, the claim generally must be brought against the government entity, not the individual employee (O.C.G.A. § 36-92-3).

How Government Vehicle Claims Differ From Ordinary Car Accident Claims

Written notice comes before any lawsuit against a city, county or state. For a city vehicle, the claim must be presented to the city’s governing authority within six months of the crash. Under O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5, it must state the time, place and extent of the injury, as well as the negligence that caused it.

For a county, O.C.G.A. § 36-11-1 requires claims to be presented within 12 months after they accrue. For a state vehicle, O.C.G.A. § 50-21-26 requires written notice within 12 months of when the loss was discovered or should have been discovered.

Immunity works differently for the state. The State of Georgia waives its immunity for torts of state officers and employees acting within the scope of their duties, subject to the exceptions and limitations in O.C.G.A. § 50-21-24, such as discretionary functions. Under O.C.G.A. § 50-21-23, that waiver applies only in Georgia state courts.

Under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33, ordinary injury suits generally must be brought within two years (Cameron v. JMP Pizza). Georgia also uses modified comparative fault. A plaintiff who is 50 percent or more responsible recovers nothing (O.C.G.A. § 51-12-33). Whether a particular claim fits these rules depends on the facts, including which entity owned the vehicle and what the driver was doing.

What a Claim Can Cover

A claim can seek payment for medical costs, lost income, pain and suffering, and property damage. Claims like these generally depend on the evidence available in each case.

• Medical expenses: emergency care, surgery, hospital stays, imaging, therapy and documented future care. Under O.C.G.A. § 51-12-1.1, medical damages are limited to the reasonable value of medically necessary care.
• Lost wages: lost income and reduced ability to earn in the future.
• Pain and suffering: physical pain, emotional distress and loss of enjoyment of life.
• Property damage: the vehicle, personal items and transportation costs.
• Wrongful death: under O.C.G.A. § 51-4-2, a surviving spouse, or if there is none, the children, may recover the full value of the decedent’s life, as shown by the evidence. The personal representative may also recover funeral, medical and other necessary expenses (O.C.G.A. § 51-4-5).

Catastrophic injuries, such as traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, amputation and severe burns, often need long-term medical proof and life-care planning.

Dollar caps apply to claims under the state waiver. No person may recover more than $1 million from one occurrence, and the state’s aggregate liability per occurrence cannot exceed $3 million (O.C.G.A. § 50-21-29). These caps are written for state claims; county and city motor-vehicle claims have their own waiver limits under O.C.G.A. § 33-24-51 and § 36-92-2, which are generally tied to statutory amounts or insurance.

How the Process Works, Step by Step

A government vehicle claim moves from a free consultation to written notice, then investigation and negotiation. A lawsuit comes only if the claim is not resolved.

1. Free consultation. We review the crash, the government vehicle, your injuries and the dates that matter.
2. Preserve evidence. Requests can cover dash camera and body camera footage, GPS data, maintenance records and driver training logs.
3. Written notice. The notice goes to the correct entity within the required period. A city claim must state a specific dollar amount, and that amount is an offer of compromise (O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5). A city claim must also be served on the mayor or council chairperson. For a state claim, notice goes by certified mail, statutory overnight delivery or personal delivery to the Risk Management Division of the Department of Administrative Services (O.C.G.A. § 50-21-26).
4. Investigation. We collect the police report, medical records and bills, wage records and photographs. Doctors may give opinions on your prognosis.
5. Response and negotiation. A city’s governing authority must act on a claim within 30 days of presentation. The statute of limitations pauses while the demand is pending without action (O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5). For a state claim, no suit can start until the state denies the claim or 90 days pass without action (O.C.G.A. § 50-21-26).
6. Suit, if needed. If the claim is not resolved, a lawsuit may follow within the deadlines. Discovery and depositions come next. Timing varies, and we explain the expected timeline after reviewing your facts.

Evidence to Protect and Mistakes to Avoid in the First Days

Early medical care and written records matter most. Start there, then protect the scene details.

• Get medical care right away, even for injuries that seem minor.
• Note the vehicle’s unit number, markings, license plate, and the driver’s name or employee number if you can see them.
• Request the official crash report and write down the responding agency.
• Photograph the scene, vehicle damage, road conditions, signs and your injuries over time.
• Get witness names and phone numbers before they leave.

Two mistakes cause the most trouble. The first is waiting to see if an injury improves before giving notice. Notice deadlines depend on who is being sued: the state period under O.C.G.A. § 50-21-26 runs from when the loss was or should have been discovered, and the county period under § 36-11-1 runs from accrual, so delay can cost you the claim. The second is giving a recorded statement or signing a release for a government adjuster before a lawyer reviews the notice rules.

Why Work With T. Madden & Associates, P.C.

T. Madden & Associates, P.C. is a Georgia personal injury firm led by attorney Terance Madden. The firm has been in practice since 1999. It has offices in Jonesboro (Clayton County), Atlanta, Decatur, Macon and Augusta.

Our team handles records requests, scheduling and paperwork, so you can focus on recovery.

The firm works on a no fee unless we win basis, but you may still be responsible for court costs and case expenses. The first consultation is free, confidential and comes with no obligation to continue. Our phone line is available 24/7, including nights and weekends.

Frequently Asked Questions

Talk With Terance Madden About Your Crash Before the Notice Deadline Passes

If a county, city or state vehicle hit you or someone in your family, the written notice clock may already be running. Terance Madden is the responsible lawyer at T. Madden & Associates, P.C., and he can review your crash, the government vehicle and the dates that matter. Reach out now through our free case evaluation, or call our 24/7 line.