Other driver is suing MY mom two years later — when my mom was the one who got hurt??

Not legal advice, but your mom needs to contact her auto insurance carrier today — not tomorrow, today. Even if the accident was two years ago, she was served with a lawsuit, and her insurer almost certainly has a duty to defend her under the policy. If she delays reporting it to them, that could actually create a coverage problem. The insurance company will assign a defense attorney. Beyond that, whatever is in the original police report — who was listed as the driver, witness names, responding officer's notes — is going to matter a lot here.

Something weirdly similar happened to a family member of mine. The other party waited until close to the statute of limitations deadline and then filed. It felt like a total ambush. What helped was that there were photos from the scene that clearly showed things inconsistent with the other person's version of events. Does your mom have anything like that — photos, texts she sent that night, anything timestamped from around the time of the crash?

The moment your mom reports this to her insurance, just know — the adjuster is going to be working to protect the insurance company's bottom line, not necessarily your mom's reputation or peace of mind. Be really careful about what she says in any recorded statement without having someone in her corner first. The other side filing this late and with a shaky story doesn't mean the insurance company will just shut it down without some pressure.

I used to work claims and this kind of late-filed suit after a gap of two years is more common than people think, especially when the plaintiff is hoping the other party has no documentation left. Here's the thing though — if there was a police report taken at the scene, that report names the actual driver. Insurers and attorneys can subpoena those records. If the person now suing wasn't named as the driver in that report, that's a massive problem for their case. The story they're telling has to be consistent with what was documented in the moment, and usually it isn't.

A few practical things worth tracking down if you can: the original police/incident report (you can usually request this from the municipality or police department that responded), any ER or urgent care records showing your mom was treated, and if anyone took photos at the scene. Also check whether your mom saved any texts or emails from around that time — sometimes people send a quick message to a family member right after an accident describing what happened, and that kind of contemporaneous record can actually carry weight.

I don't doubt your mom's version of events, but I'm curious — was a police report actually filed at the time? And was the real driver cited or identified in writing? Because if for some reason the report was vague or incomplete about who was behind the wheel, that creates some murkiness the other side might try to exploit. The strength of her position really hinges on what the contemporaneous documentation says.