If a pothole, broken pavement, or a raised sidewalk threw you off a bike or an e-scooter, the claim is usually against a city, a county, or the state, and two things work against you from the first day. You have six months, not two years, to present a written claim. And the defect you need to prove is often patched within weeks.
When the Government Is Responsible for a Road Defect
Under Government Code section 835, a public entity is liable for an injury caused by a dangerous condition of its property if you can show:
- the property was in a dangerous condition when you were hurt;
- the condition caused the injury;
- it created a reasonably foreseeable risk of the kind of injury you suffered; and
- either a public employee’s negligence created it, or the entity knew or should have known about it in time to fix it or warn.
Government Code section 830 defines a dangerous condition as one that creates a substantial risk of injury, as opposed to a minor, trivial, or insignificant one, when the property is used with due care in a reasonably foreseeable way.
The trivial defect argument
Expect the agency to call the defect too small to matter. Government Code section 830.2 lets a court rule that a condition was trivial as a matter of law, but only after viewing the evidence most favorably to the injured person and in view of the surrounding circumstances. The statute sets no minimum depth. A crack running in the direction of travel can catch a narrow tire that a pedestrian would step over without noticing, and a pothole hidden by shade, water, or leaves is different from one in full sun.
Notice
Most pothole claims turn on notice. Under Government Code section 835.2, the entity had actual notice if it knew of the condition and knew or should have known it was dangerous. It had constructive notice if the condition existed long enough, and was obvious enough, that the entity should have discovered it with due care, including through a reasonable inspection system. Prior complaints, earlier repairs at the same spot, and inspections that skipped the street are the usual evidence.
Defenses that can end a claim
Design immunity under Government Code section 830.6 can protect an agency when an approved plan or design caused the injury; it covers how a road was laid out, not a pothole that formed years later. Government Code section 831.4 gives public entities immunity for injuries caused by the condition of any trail used for recreation, including riding, and California appellate courts have held that a paved bike path separated from the street is a trail. A pothole on a river, beach, or park bike path therefore usually falls under this immunity; the same defect on a street or in a painted bike lane does not (Prokop v. City of Los Angeles (2007) 150 Cal.App.4th 1332).
Your Own Riding Matters, but Fault Alone Does Not Bar the Claim
California uses pure comparative negligence, so a rider’s share of fault reduces the recovery rather than barring it. Our guide to comparative negligence in California explains the math. Three rules matter:
- A slower cyclist normally rides as close as practicable to the right edge, but Vehicle Code section 21202 allows moving left when reasonably necessary to avoid surface hazards. Steering around broken pavement can fit that exception if the move was made safely.
- Vehicle Code section 21235 bars riding a motorized scooter on a sidewalk except to enter or leave adjacent property, so a raised sidewalk crash on an e-scooter will draw a fault argument, and possibly an argument that the lip was not dangerous to careful sidewalk users.
- Whether a bicycle may be ridden on a sidewalk is left to local ordinance under Vehicle Code section 21206.
The Six-Month Claim Comes First
Under Government Code section 945.4, you cannot sue a public entity for these injuries until a written claim has been presented and rejected or deemed rejected. The sequence:
- Present the claim within six months of the injury (Government Code section 911.2). Claims against a city or county go to its clerk, secretary, auditor, or governing body. Claims against the state go to the Department of General Services on its claim form, with a $25 filing fee or a fee waiver request (Government Code sections 910.4, 915, and 911.2).
- Include what Government Code section 910 requires: your name and mailing address, an address where notices should be sent, the date, place, and circumstances, a general description of the injury, and any responsible employees’ names if known. Under $10,000, state the amount and how you calculated it. Over $10,000, give no dollar figure but say whether it would be a limited civil case.
- Allow 45 days. If the entity does not act within 45 days, the claim is deemed rejected (Government Code section 912.4).
- Sue on time. If the entity mails or personally delivers a written rejection, the lawsuit is due within six months after the notice was mailed or delivered. If no written notice is given, the period is two years from the injury (Government Code section 945.6).
A missed six-month date is not always fatal. Government Code section 911.4 allows a written application to present a late claim within a reasonable time, not more than one year after the injury, stating the reason for the delay, with the proposed claim attached, but approval is not automatic. If the application is denied, a court petition is possible within six months of the denial (Government Code section 946.6). The usual extension for minors does not apply to government claims (Code of Civil Procedure section 352).
Document the Hazard Before It Is Repaired
- Measure it on camera. Staying out of traffic, photograph the defect with a tape measure laid across it and standing in it, or a coin for scale, to show width and depth. Shoot close, then from 20 or 30 feet back.
- Pin the location. Drop a pin in your phone’s map app at the exact spot and screenshot it with the coordinates. Note the nearest address, cross street, or utility pole number.
- Film the approach. Repeat your route at the same time of day so the lighting matches.
- Find witnesses. Get names and numbers of anyone who saw the crash or knows how long the defect has existed. Ask nearby businesses about cameras; footage is often overwritten within days.
- Go back. If the spot is patched or painted after your crash, photograph that too. A later repair generally cannot be used to prove negligence (Evidence Code section 1151), but it helps confirm the location and may point to who maintains it.
- Keep the bike or scooter as it is. A bent rim, a pinch flat, or a cracked fork shows how the impact happened. For a rental scooter, photograph its ID number and screenshot the ride in the app.
Request the Agency’s Repair and Complaint Records
Under the California Public Records Act, which begins at Government Code section 7920.000, an agency must make nonexempt records available on a request that reasonably describes them, for the direct cost of duplication (Government Code section 7922.530). Within 10 days it must tell you whether it has disclosable records, with an extension of up to 14 days in unusual circumstances (Government Code section 7922.535). For a road defect, ask for:
- service requests and complaints about that block, including 311 and app reports;
- pothole and pavement work orders for the location;
- prior claims for injury or damage at the same spot;
- inspection schedules and logs for the street; and
- any planned paving or repair project covering it.
Give a specific location and a date range. Vague requests get vague answers.
What to Do This Week
- Count six months from the crash and put that date on your calendar.
- Measure, pin, and film the defect before it is repaired.
- Confirm who maintains the street: the city, the county, or the state.
- Send the public records request.
- Get medical care and keep the records. More on bicycle accident claims and scooter accident claims.
About the author. Joshua B. Adelpour is the founder of Not My Fault Law Group, APC, a California personal injury firm based in Woodland Hills. He is licensed by the State Bar of California, Bar No. 318226, and spent nearly a decade defending insurance companies in civil litigation before opening the firm. Call (213) 800-0706 for a free consultation.
This article is general information about California law and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney client relationship. Every case depends on its own facts. Last updated October 6, 2026.