Louisiana Crash Investigation, Evidence Preservation & Prescription

Preserve crash evidence immediately; Louisiana does not give a separate negligent-spoliation tort as a safety net

Vehicles, EDR/telematics, phone/app data, surveillance, dash camera, commercial records and witnesses can disappear long before suit. Reynolds v. Bordelon holds that Louisiana does not recognize negligent spoliation as an independent tort and instead points to evidentiary, discovery and contractual remedies. Send focused preservation requests early and keep proof of notice, custody and relevance.

The general delictual prescription changed from one year to two years for new causes beginning July 1, 2024

Current Civil Code art. 3493.1 gives delictual actions a two-year prescriptive period from the day injury or damage is sustained. Act 423 expressly made the change prospective only for delictual actions arising after July 1, 2024. Therefore, an accident before that date should not automatically receive the new two-year period; identify the cause-of-action date and prior law immediately.

Special claim and procedural deadlines remain separate from the general tort period

Wrongful-death/survival articles have their own current timing language; insurer claims and penalties can have separate prescription; governmental suits have special court/service requirements; contracts and product claims can follow different rules. Build a deadline ledger by cause of action rather than treating art. 3493.1 as a universal two-year clock.

Separate preservation from compulsory access

A preservation demand documents notice and asks the custodian not to destroy evidence; it does not itself compel production. Track each item, custodian, preservation date, issue proved and access method. Use discovery, subpoena, public-record law, consent or court orders where appropriate. Preserve original electronic files and metadata when possible rather than screenshots alone.

Closing guidance

Preserve the evidence now and determine which prescription regime governs the accident date. Louisiana's two-year tort period is prospective from July 1, 2024 and does not replace claim-specific deadlines.