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Hurt in a crash in Birmingham, with bills you can't cover?

Bills, missed work, an insurer already calling? Here are Alabama's claim numbers, your crash report and your deadline. Asking for a call is free, and you can say no.

General information, not legal advice. Updated November 10, 2026. Attorney review pending

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On this page
  1. What injury claims cost insurers in Alabama
  2. Real results from the Birmingham area
  3. Unpaid medical bills and uninsured drivers, where you live
  4. What do you need to do?
  5. How to get your Birmingham crash report.
  6. Alabama's time limit is two years, with exceptions.
  7. A calm list for the first three days.
  8. A free call-back, not a law firm.
  9. Sources

What claims cost

What injury claims cost insurers in Alabama

No source we found reports what claims cost insurers inside Birmingham itself, so the closest honest numbers are for all of Alabama. Each figure says what it is and where it comes from.

$586.4 millionin bodily injury liability losses insurers recorded for Alabama crashes (Table 8B: $586,434,127 across 27,735 claims), accidents in 2022Incurred losses: money paid plus the insurers' own estimates for claims still open, plus adjustment expenses. Private passenger auto, separate-limit bodily injury coverage only, so the true total is higher. This is what these claims cost insurers, not what injured people received.Source: NAIC (Table 8B, Bodily Injury Liability 2020-2022, Total Business, printed p. 42).
$21,144average insurer loss per bodily injury liability claim in Alabama ($21,144.19 exactly), accidents in 2022Incurred losses divided by incurred claims, so it is what a claim cost insurers on average, not what an injured person received. The countrywide figure in the same table is $28,918.86.Source: NAIC (Table 8D, Bodily Injury Liability 2020-2022, Total Business, printed p. 44).
$28,278Many claims are smallerwhat the average bodily injury liability claim cost insurers, 2024Private passenger auto, excluding Massachusetts and most no-fault states; some claims are far larger and many are smaller. It includes insurers' claim-handling costs, so injured people received less than this on average.Source: Triple-I / ISO.
$6.44 billionestimated total economic cost of motor vehicle crashes in Alabama (about $1,313 per person), 2019A cost estimate for the whole state, whoever paid. Not money paid to injured people. The national average was $1,035 per person.Source: NHTSA (Table 6-1, p. 100).
About these numbers
  • $586.4 million Incurred losses: money paid plus the insurers' own estimates for claims still open, plus adjustment expenses. Private passenger auto, separate-limit bodily injury coverage only, so the true total is higher. This is what these claims cost insurers, not what injured people received.
  • $21,144 Incurred losses divided by incurred claims, so it is what a claim cost insurers on average, not what an injured person received. The countrywide figure in the same table is $28,918.86.
  • $28,278 Private passenger auto, excluding Massachusetts and most no-fault states; some claims are far larger and many are smaller. It includes insurers' claim-handling costs, so injured people received less than this on average.
  • $6.44 billion A cost estimate for the whole state, whoever paid. Not money paid to injured people. The national average was $1,035 per person.

These are averages and totals across many claims. They describe what insurers and courts have done, not what any one claim is worth. Every case is different, and most claims end in a settlement, which is often far less than a headline verdict. CrashFirst is not a law firm and cannot tell you what your claim is worth.

Real examples

Real results from the Birmingham area

Past results do not predict yours.These are real, public results, picked to show a range rather than the biggest numbers. Each turned on its own facts. CrashFirst has no results of its own and does not say you would get anything like them.

  • Small · 2024

    A Jefferson County jury awarded $15,000 after a rear-end crash.

    In Gadsden v. Johnson (Bessemer division), a woman said a July 2021 rear-end crash caused multiple disc bulges and soft-tissue injuries. The defendant disputed that the crash caused the disc bulges. In February 2024 the jury awarded $15,000, which the reporter says was less than 65% of her claimed medical expenses.

    Source: Alabama Jury Verdict Reporter, March 2024 (24 AJVR 3): Gadsden v. Johnson, No. 22-900011, Jefferson County Circuit Court (p. 1: Verdict $15,000 for plaintiff; Circuit: Jefferson, 2-7-24)

  • Middle (neighboring county) · 2026

    A Shelby County, Alabama, jury awarded $220,000 for a spinal fusion after a rear-end crash.

    In Clayton v. Jones, a woman stopped to turn left on Alabama 17 was rear-ended by a 15,000-pound company truck in November 2020 and needed cervical disc fusion surgery. In May 2026 a jury awarded $220,000 ($210,000 to her and $10,000 to her son, a passenger). Shelby County borders Jefferson County, where Birmingham is.

    Source: Alabama Jury Verdict Reporter, September 2026 (26 AJVR 9): Clayton v. Jones, No. 22-900666, Shelby County (AL) Circuit Court (p. 7: Verdict $220,000 for plaintiffs; Circuit: Shelby, 5-15-26)

  • Headline vs collectable · 2022

    A $3.2 million judgment, and a $300,000 limit on one defendant.

    A Jefferson County judge entered a $3.2 million judgment for five people hurt when a Birmingham police cruiser crashed into a car in March 2020. WBRC reported that “the city is only responsible for $300,000,” with the officer facing the rest. A headline number and what can be collected are different things.

    Source: WBRC, $3.2 million judgement against the City of Birmingham for officer-involved crash (Feb. 16, 2022)

The problems here

Unpaid medical bills and uninsured drivers, where you live

When the other side has no insurance, or the bills keep coming before anything is settled, the money problem is real. These are the local numbers we could source.

6.0%of Alabama people with a credit record had medical debt in collections (median $1,339), Aug. 2026Only counts medical debt that reached collections and sits on a credit file. The national share was 3.0%.Source: Urban Institute (Alabama row, medcoll = .0597576; medcollpos_p50 = 1339).
6.6%of people in Jefferson County, AL with a credit record had medical debt in collections (median $1,376), Aug. 2026Only counts medical debt that reached collections and sits on a credit file. The national share was 3.0%.Source: Urban Institute (Jefferson County (FIPS 01073), medcoll = .0655746; medcollpos_p50 = 1376).
16.8%of Alabama drivers estimated to be uninsured, 2023The Insurance Research Council estimates this from insurance claims, not from a count of cars. The national estimate was 15.4%.Source: Triple-I / IRC (Estimated Percentage of Uninsured Motorists by State, 2023).
About these numbers
  • 6.0% Only counts medical debt that reached collections and sits on a credit file. The national share was 3.0%.
  • 6.6% Only counts medical debt that reached collections and sits on a credit file. The national share was 3.0%.
  • 16.8% The Insurance Research Council estimates this from insurance claims, not from a count of cars. The national estimate was 15.4%.
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What do you need to do?

I need to... Read
Know what to do right now What to do after a car accident in Birmingham
Get my police or ALEA report Birmingham police accident report
Understand the Alabama time limit Alabama statute of limitations
Understand fault in Alabama Is Alabama a contributory negligence state?
Check insurance minimums Alabama minimum car insurance
Know whether I must report Alabama accident reporting requirements
See where serious crashes happen Most dangerous roads in Birmingham and the Birmingham Crash Report 2026

Crash report

How to get your Birmingham crash report.

  1. Find out who responded. City streets may be handled by Birmingham Police (BPD). The ALEA Highway Patrol, a county sheriff or another police department may handle other crashes. The officer's card or slip will say.
  2. Get the report or case number from the officer at the scene. If you don't have it, call the agency's non-emergency line and give your name, the date and the place.
  3. If BPD wrote it: request it from the BPD Records Division, 1710 1st Avenue North, Birmingham, AL 35203, Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., excluding holidays. Phone (205) 254-6308 [1] [1].
  4. If ALEA wrote it: use the state's online crash report portal. The ALEA Highway Patrol Birmingham office is 205.635.0006 [3].
How long until the report is ready?

BPD's page does not list a wait time for accident reports. Call the Records Division at (205) 254-6308 and ask.

BPD's non-emergency number is 205-328-9311 and headquarters is 205-254-1700; in an emergency call 911 [2] [2]. Full guide: how to get a Birmingham police accident report, with the fees, who can request one and what to confirm before you pay.

Sources: City of Birmingham, Police Records Division · ALEA, Highway Patrol contact information. Fees and hours change; confirm on the official page before you go.

The deadline

Alabama's time limit is two years, with exceptions.

In most Alabama injury cases a lawsuit has to be filed within two years. The law is Ala. Code § 6-2-38(l): "All actions for any injury to the person or rights of another not arising from contract and not specifically enumerated in this section must be brought within two years." [4]

There are exceptions.

Wrongful death has its own two-year rule counted from the death, people who are under 19 when the right to sue arises can have extra time, and claims against a city or town can have a much shorter notice period. Whether an exception applies to you is a question for an attorney.

Every Alabama deadline, with the statute text, is on our statute of limitations page. We're not lawyers. This is general information, not legal advice.

First 72 hours

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You ask for a call-back and a CrashFirst team member phones you about your request. We are not a law firm and cannot give legal advice. Participating attorneys pay CrashFirst a set fee for each connection, fixed when we connect you, and the fee does not change with the outcome of any case. See how we're paid.

Local facts

Crashes in Jefferson County, Alabama.

959People killed in Jefferson County crashes, 2015 to 2024NHTSA FARS, 2015-2024 analysis
101Traffic deaths in Jefferson County in 2024NHTSA FARS, 2015-2024 analysis
182Of those killed in 2015 to 2024 were people on footNHTSA FARS, 2015-2024 analysis

Counts differ by source because agencies define crashes differently. Deaths are only part of the picture; many more people are hurt. Our own full analysis: the Birmingham Crash Report 2026.

More in Birmingham

The state rules

Deadlines, fault and reports for all of Alabama are in the Alabama reference.

Keep reading

Sources

Page last updated November 10, 2026. Attorney review pending. General information, not legal advice. Fees, hours and rules change; confirm on the official page. How we source.

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