Tort Claims in Alberta

Last reviewed September 16, 2026. General legal information for Alberta, not legal advice.

What a tort claim is

Tort is the legal word for a civil wrong: harm one person causes another that the law lets the injured person sue over. Most injury claims are negligence claims. To succeed you prove that the other party owed you a duty of care, fell short of it, and that the failure caused your injuries and losses.

A tort claim is different from your accident benefits. Section B pays no matter who was at fault, but only listed benefits up to fixed limits. A tort claim depends on fault, and it aims to put you, as far as money can, where you would have been without the injury.

What a tort claim can recover

When an injury is fatal, family members bring the claim under the Fatal Accidents Act.

Proving fault

Fault is proven with evidence gathered as early as possible:

• the police collision report and any charges laid
• photos of the scene, vehicles, road conditions and injuries
• dashcam, doorbell and business security video, which is often overwritten within days
• names and contact details of witnesses
• vehicle data and, in serious crashes, an accident reconstruction expert

Fault is not all or nothing. If you were partly responsible, Alberta’s Contributory Negligence Act reduces your compensation by your share rather than ending the claim. See partly at fault claims.

Who actually pays

You sue the person or business at fault, but in practice their insurer defends the claim and pays any settlement or judgment, up to the policy limits. Auto, home, commercial and umbrella policies can all respond.

• Hit and run: under the Motor Vehicle Accident Claims Act, a claim against an unidentified driver is brought against the Administrator, and notice must be given within 90 days of the accident.
• Uninsured driver: you sue the driver, and if a judgment goes unpaid you can apply to the Administrator for payment from the fund, subject to the Act’s limits and conditions.

Deadlines for a tort claim

1. Start within 2 years of when you knew, or ought to have known, of the injury, who caused it, and that it warrants a claim, and in any event within 10 years. See the limitation period guide.
2. Serve the statement of claim within 1 year of filing it. The court can extend that by up to 3 months, but only on an application made before the year ends.
3. Keep the claim moving. If 3 years pass without a significant advance, the court must dismiss the action on application, subject to limited exceptions.

In Edmonton, claims are filed with the Court of King’s Bench at the Edmonton Law Courts, 1A Sir Winston Churchill Square. In Calgary, at the Calgary Courts Centre, 601 5th Street SW.

Tort claims under Care-First

Under the new Automobile Insurance Act, a person injured in a car crash after Care-First starts can sue for pain and suffering only against defined parties: a driver who caused the accident and is found guilty of a prescribed Criminal Code or Traffic Safety Act offence, or given a prescribed administrative penalty; a vehicle manufacturer; a parts maker or supplier; a vehicle seller; a garage; a liquor licence holder or social host; the municipality responsible for the road; or a prescribed class of persons. Those claims recover only general damages for pain and suffering and punitive damages, and any award for pain and suffering is reduced by the permanent impairment benefit you are entitled to. Separate lawsuits can recover some losses above the benefit maximums, such as income above the insurable maximum.

Care-First changes car accident claims only. Injuries from a fall on someone’s property, a dog bite or other non-vehicle negligence are still claimed in tort as before.