If you were injured in a car accident in Alberta, you can generally claim compensation from the at-fault driver’s insurance for your injuries, your lost income and your treatment costs. You do not pay a lawyer up front. We have a no win, no pay policy. Unlike most injury law firms, we also have a flat contingency fee. What you can claim, and how long you have to claim it, depends on the date of your accident.
I am Joseph A. Nagy, an experienced Edmonton car accident lawyer. The experienced injury lawyers at Joseph A. Nagy Injury Law help people injured in motor vehicle accidents. We serve clients throughout central and northern Alberta.
Every collision is different, and so is every claim. Find the type of accident that caused your injury below — head-on, multi-vehicle, rollover, pedestrian, passenger, rear end, T-bone, drunk driver, motorcycle or bicycle. Each page explains who is usually at fault, what the claim involves, and the questions people most often ask.
For a free consultation, call (780) 760-4878 (HURT) or contact me personally, Joseph A. Nagy. You are under no obligation to hire me.
By evidence, not by the police report alone. Insurers assign fault using the collision report, driver and witness statements, scene evidence, damage patterns and, where needed, accident reconstruction. A traffic ticket is relevant but not decisive: civil fault is decided on the balance of probabilities, separately from the traffic court outcome. Fault can also be shared — under the Contributory Negligence Act your damages are reduced by your share of fault for the accident. Fault decides who pays for accidents before January 1, 2027, when Alberta moves to no-fault insurance. For accidents on or after that date your own insurer pays benefits regardless of fault, though fault still affects your premiums.
Alberta’s Motor Vehicle Accident Claims Program is the backstop. It allows an injured person to sue an uninsured or unidentified driver, with a combined maximum of $200,000 shared among all victims of the collision. For a hit and run, written notice must reach the Administrator within 90 days. The two-year limitation period still applies, and the program pays only where no insurance is available. This is the position for accidents before January 1, 2027; how the program operates alongside Care-First after that date is not yet settled. See No-Fault Insurance in Alberta: What “Care-First” Means for Injured Albertans.
No. You are required to report the collision to your own insurer and to cooperate under your own policy. You are not required to give a recorded statement to the at-fault driver’s insurer. Giving one early — before your injuries have been diagnosed and while you are minimising them out of politeness — is one of the most common ways a claim is damaged. Get advice first.
It depends on the date of your accident. Accidents before January 1, 2027 fall under Alberta’s current system, which preserves your right to pursue a claim against the at-fault driver. Time limits still apply — generally two years from the date of the accident — so it is important not to wait. For accidents on or after that date, Alberta’s Care-First system almost entirely removes that right and replaces it with benefits from your own insurer.
You deserve a personal injury lawyer who knows local laws, stands up to the insurance company, and gets you all the compensation you deserve.
