What to do after a car accident in Kansas
Every rule below is quoted from Kansas law or a state agency, with a link. Checked September 17, 2026.
No fault state
The short answer
Kansas is a no fault state. Your own car insurance pays your medical bills after a crash no matter who caused it, and you can only sue the other driver for pain and suffering once your injury is serious enough. If no police officer is at the scene, the driver, or a passenger 18 or older, must report the crash right away to the nearest police if there is $1,000 or more in property damage, or anyone is hurt or killed. You have 2 years to sue for injuries from a car crash in Kansas.
Deadlines in Kansas
- 2 years
- to sue for injuriesK.S.A. 60-513(a)(4)
- 2 years
- to sue for car or property damageK.S.A. 60-513(a)(2)
- 2 years
- for a family to sue after a deathK.S.A. 60-513(a)(5)
Miss one of these and you can lose the right to claim, even with a strong case.
At the scene
Stop, share your information and help anyone hurt
A driver in a Kansas crash must stop at the scene, and give their name, address, license, and insurance information to anyone hurt or to police, and help anyone who is injured, including getting them to a doctor if needed.
“shall immediately stop such vehicle at the scene of such accident, or as close thereto as possible”
When you must call the police
If no police officer is at the scene, the driver, or a passenger 18 or older, must report the crash right away to the nearest police if there is $1,000 or more in property damage, or anyone is hurt or killed.
“There is apparently property damage of $1,000 or more; (2) any person involved in the accident is injured or killed”
Moving your car out of traffic
In Kansas, if your car is blocking traffic on an interstate, U.S. highway, or other multilane or divided road after a crash, you must make a reasonable effort to move it off the road, as long as no one is dead or hurt and it is safe to move.
“the owner or driver of a vehicle which obstructs the regular flow of traffic on any interstate highway, U.S. highway, or any multilane or divided roadway, shall make every reasonable effort to move the vehicle from the roadway, if, moving the vehicle may be done safely”
In the days after
Whether you must file a report yourself
Kansas's Division of Vehicles can make you file a written accident report only if it decides one is needed. There is no automatic report every driver must send to the state after a crash.
“The division may require any driver or owner of a vehicle involved in an accident to file a written report whenever the division deems it necessary”
Getting a copy of the crash report
Order an official Kansas Highway Patrol crash report online through the KHP Records Portal. It costs $5 for a crash report, plus $2 for each witness statement.
“A fee of $5.00 will be assessed for crash reports and $2.00 per witness statement.”
Who pays for the damage
Kansas is a no fault state. Your own car insurance pays your medical bills after a crash no matter who caused it, and you can only sue the other driver for pain and suffering once your injury is serious enough.
“The purpose of this act is to provide a means of compensating persons promptly for accidental bodily injury arising out of the ownership, operation, maintenance or use of motor vehicles in lieu of liability for damages”
Insurance rules in Kansas
What insurance every driver must carry
Kansas drivers must carry at least $25,000 in liability coverage per person, $50,000 per crash, and $25,000 for property damage.
“not less than $25,000 because of bodily injury to, or death of, one person in any one accident”
Personal injury protection (PIP)
Kansas requires every car insurance policy to include personal injury protection coverage, with medical benefits of at least $4,500.
“allowances for all reasonable expenses, up to a limit of not less than $4,500, for necessary health care”
When you can sue the other driver
You can only sue the other driver for pain and suffering if your medical treatment is worth $2,000 or more, or your injury is a permanent disfigurement, a broken weight bearing bone, loss of a body part, a permanent injury, permanent loss of a body function, or death.
“only in the event the injury requires medical treatment of a kind described in this act as medical benefits, having a reasonable value of $2,000 or more”
If the other driver has no insurance
Kansas insurers must include uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage in every auto policy, but you can reject it in writing.
“shall have the right to reject, in writing, the uninsured motorist coverage required by subsections (a) and (b)”
Medical payments coverage
Kansas requires personal injury protection (PIP), which already covers medical expenses. Extra medical payments coverage beyond PIP, called excess medical payments coverage, is optional.
“Additional optional coverage, sometimes called riders, are available to you.”
If an insurance company treats you unfairly
To file a complaint against an insurance company in Kansas, use the online complaint form on the Kansas Department of Insurance's File a Complaint page, or download and mail/fax/email the paper form.
“To file a consumer complaint against an insurance company/agent/agency, simply follow this three-step process: Select the following link and you will be taken to the Kansas online complaint form.”
The deadline rules, word for word
Deadline to sue for injuries
You have 2 years to sue for injuries from a car crash in Kansas.
“The following actions shall be brought within two years”
Deadline to sue for car damage
You have 2 years to sue over vehicle or property damage from a car crash in Kansas.
“The following actions shall be brought within two years”
Deadline for a wrongful death claim
You have 2 years to sue over a death from a car crash in Kansas.
“The following actions shall be brought within two years”
If a government vehicle or road was involved
If a city or county vehicle or road is involved, you must file a written notice of claim with that city or county before you can sue. You then have to wait until the claim is denied, or 120 days pass, whichever comes first, and you get at least 90 more days after a denial to file suit, even if the usual 2 year deadline is close.
“any person having a claim against a municipality or against an employee of a municipality which could give rise to an action brought under the Kansas tort claims act shall”
Sources on this page
Each one was opened and checked on September 17, 2026.
- K.S.A. 40-3102
- K.S.A. 40-3103(k)
- K.S.A. 40-3117
- K.S.A. 60-258a(a)
- K.S.A. 60-513(a)(4)
- K.S.A. 12-105b(d)(1)
- K.S.A. 8-1604(b)
- K.S.A. 8-1607
- K.S.A. 40-3107(e)
- K.S.A. 40-284(c)
- Kansas Department of Insurance, Auto Insurance Shopper's Guide
- K.S.A. 8-1602(a)
- K.S.A. 8-15,107
- https://kansashighwaypatrol.gov/find-a-troop/troop-location-map/general-headquarters/legal-counsel/records-2/
- Kansas Department of Insurance, File a Complaint page
- Kan. R. Prof'l Conduct 226, Rule 1.5(d)
Know My Claim is not a law firm or a government agency, and this page is not legal advice. Laws change, so check the linked source before you rely on a deadline.