Find an ATV accident lawyer in Tucson: where you can ride and who pays
Most ATV and side-by-side crashes near Tucson happen off paved roads, so the first question is who owns the ground. In the city, riding off the roadway within a quarter mile of any structure is a civil infraction. County areas fall to the Pima County Sheriff. Any suit goes to Pima County Superior Court, and the filing is due in 2 years.
Last checked November 9, 2026 · Official sources (24)
Where can you legally ride an ATV in Tucson?
Not just anywhere. Inside the city, it is a civil infraction to drive a motor vehicle off the roadway within one-fourth mile of any structure. The rule has exceptions, such as written permission from the property owner.
Pima County's Tucson Mountain Park bans motorized vehicles, including e-bikes, off roads. The Coronado National Forest tells riders to stay on designated routes and not make new trails.
Riding where you should not does not end your claim. The other side will use it to argue fault, though, and Arizona lowers your award by your share of the blame instead of barring it.
Who handles an ATV crash around Tucson?
| Where it happened | Who has the ground or the case | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Inside Tucson, off the road | The city's off-roadway rule applies. | Ask for any police report number at the scene |
| County areas outside the city | The Pima County Sheriff patrols districts such as Rincon, San Xavier, Tucson Mountain and Vail. | Reports cost $5.00 each at Records Maintenance. |
| Tucson Mountain Park | Pima County sets the park rules. | A claim goes to the Clerk of the Board. |
| Coronado National Forest | The U.S. Forest Service manages the routes. | Ask a lawyer how federal claims work before you write anyone |
| Private land | The owner, and maybe the person who invited you | Get the owner's name and insurer in writing |
Do you need a decal or a safety course to ride in Arizona?
Yes, for most machines. The MVD decal rule covers dirt bikes, ATVs and side-by-sides at or under 2,500 pounds. The decal costs $25 a year. Since Jan. 1, 2025, an owner must pass a free safety course before renewing it.
A rider under 18 must wear a helmet on public or state land, and the Coronado National Forest tells riders to stay on designated routes. Take a photo of the decal, the title and the helmet. They show who was following the rules.
Who pays after an ATV or side-by-side crash near Tucson?
- The landowner, but only in narrow cases. A person on the land without paying admission can generally win only if the owner was wilful, malicious or grossly negligent.
- A business that rented you the machine or charged admission, because a paying guest is not a free recreational user.
- The maker, if a roll bar, belt or other part failed. With a side-by-side, ask about a rollover and about the roll bar and belts.
- Another rider or driver, with Arizona splitting fault by percent.
A signed waiver at a tour or rental is not the last word. Under the Arizona Constitution, a jury, not the tour company, decides what a signed waiver is worth.
What should you do in the first weeks after a Tucson ATV crash?
- Get care. Banner - University Medical Center Tucson is a state-designated Level I trauma center on North Campbell Avenue.
- Ask the sheriff for the report if the crash was in a county area. Each report is $5.00.
- Photograph the machine, the ground and your gear. Leave the machine unrepaired and unsold until a lawyer has had it inspected.
- If a government owned the land, send a notice of claim within 180 days.
- Sue a private party within 2 years. After a government denies a claim, you have 1 year.
Questions
Can I ride a side-by-side on Tucson streets?
The Consumer Product Safety Commission says to stay off paved and public roads. Check your title and registration class with MVD before you try.
How common are ATV injuries?
Nationwide, more than 800 people die and about 100,000 land in the ER each year.
My child was hurt on an ATV. Is the deadline different?
Time to sue does not run while a child is under 18. A settlement for a child also needs a judge's approval.
What if I was hurt on a friend's land?
The same free-recreation limit can apply, so the owner is liable only for wilful, malicious or grossly negligent conduct. Another rider may still owe you.
ATV or side-by-side accident in Tucson? See if you are owed money.
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See if I’m owed moneySources (24)
- Tucson Code, Sec. 11-70.1, checked 2026-11-09. “It is a civil infraction for any person to operate a motor vehicle off the roadway within one-fourth mile of any structure, occupied or not, within the city.”
- Pima County Sheriff, Patrol Area Map, checked 2026-11-08. “Patrol areas are determined by district jurisdictions.”
- Pima County Superior Court, Contact, checked 2026-11-08. “110 West Congress Street”
- A.R.S. § 12-542, checked 2026-11-08. “within two years after the cause of action accrues”
- Arizona Department of Transportation, MVD, OHV and Boating Registration, checked 2026-11-09. “Has an unladen weight of 2,500 lbs. or less.”
- Arizona Department of Transportation, MVD, OHV and Boating Registration, checked 2026-11-09. “The fee for the decal is $25 per year.”
- Pima County Natural Resources, Parks and Recreation, Tucson Mountain Park Rules, checked 2026-11-09. “Motorized vehicles, including e-bikes, are prohibited off roads.”
- A.R.S. § 12-821.01, checked 2026-11-08. “within one hundred eighty days after the cause of action accrues”
- A.R.S. 33-1551, checked 2026-11-09. “is not liable to a recreational user or educational user except on a showing that the owner, easement holder, lessee, tenant, manager or occupant was guilty of wilful, malicious or grossly negligent conduct”
- A.R.S. 33-1551, checked 2026-11-09. “without the payment of an admission fee or any other consideration to travel across or to enter premises to hunt, fish, trap, camp, hike, ride, engage in off-highway vehicle, off-road recreational motor vehicle or all-terrain vehicle activity”
- U.S. Forest Service, Coronado National Forest, Off-Highway Vehicles, checked 2026-11-09. “Stay on designated routes. Do not make new trails.”
- A.R.S. § 12-2505, checked 2026-11-08. “the claimant's action is not barred, but the full damages shall be reduced in proportion to the relative degree of the claimant's fault”
- Pima County Sheriff, Obtain a Police Report, checked 2026-11-08. “Reports are $5.00 each (additional $.25/per page for reports over twenty pages)”
- Pima County, Clerk of the Board, checked 2026-11-09. “accepts claims and litigation served on Pima County”
- Arizona Department of Transportation, MVD, OHV and Boating Registration, checked 2026-11-09. “you must pass the Required for OHV Decal: Safe & Ethical Riding in Arizona Off Highway Vehicle safety education course before you renew your OHV decal.”
- A.R.S. 28-1179, checked 2026-11-09. “A person who is under eighteen years of age may not operate an off-highway vehicle or be an off-highway vehicle passenger on public or state land unless the person is wearing a protective helmet”
- CPSC 2024 OHV report, checked 2026-11-09. “Rollovers are especially consequential for ROVs”
- Phelps v. Firebird Raceway (Ariz. 2005), checked 2026-11-09. “applies to an express contractual assumption of risk. We hold that it does.”
- Arizona DHS, State Designated Trauma Centers, checked 2026-11-08. “1625 N. Campbell Ave, Tucson, AZ 85719 11/11/24 11/11/27”
- A.R.S. § 12-821, checked 2026-11-08. “shall be brought within one year after the cause of action accrues and not afterward”
- CPSC, checked 2026-11-09. “Stay off paved roads. Never ride on public roads, except to cross, where permitted by law.”
- CPSC, checked 2026-11-09. “an annual average of more than 800 deaths and an estimated 100,000 emergency department-treated injuries involving OHVs”
- A.R.S. § 12-502, checked 2026-11-08. “the period of such disability shall not be deemed a portion of the period limited for commencement of the action”
- Arizona Rules of Probate Procedure, Rule 53, checked 2026-11-09. “no settlement of a claim brought on behalf of a minor or an adult in need of protection is binding on the minor or the adult in need of protection unless it is approved by a judicial officer.”