What to do after a car accident in Kentucky
Every rule below is quoted from Kentucky law or a state agency, with a link. Checked September 17, 2026.
Choice no fault state
The short answer
Kentucky is a choice no fault state. By default, your own car insurance pays basic medical and wage loss benefits after a crash no matter who was at fault, and you can only sue for pain and suffering once a threshold is met. A driver can instead file a written rejection of this limit with the Department of Insurance before a crash happens, which keeps their full right to sue like in a regular at fault state. The driver must immediately notify police if the crash caused a death, an injury, or damage that leaves a vehicle undriveable. For injuries from a car crash, you generally have 2 years to sue, counted from the injury, the death, or the date of your last basic reparation benefit payment, whichever is latest.
Deadlines in Kentucky
- 2 years
- to sue for injuriesKRS 304.39-230(6)
- 2 years
- to sue for car or property damageKRS 413.125
- 2 years
- for a family to sue after a deathKRS 304.39-230(6)
- 1 year property, 2 years personal injury
- to notify the government if a public vehicle or road was involvedKRS 49.120(1)
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 Kentucky crash must stop, check on anyone hurt, help them including getting them to a doctor if needed, and give their name, address, and vehicle registration number to the other people involved.
“shall immediately stop and ascertain the extent of the injury or damage and render reasonable assistance”
When you must call the police
The driver must immediately notify police if the crash caused a death, an injury, or damage that leaves a vehicle undriveable.
“shall be required to immediately notify a law enforcement officer having jurisdiction”
Moving your car out of traffic
On an interstate highway or parkway, if the crash did not cause a death, a visible injury, or a hazardous material spill, the driver must move the vehicle off the road to a safe spot near the crash as soon as it can be moved safely.
“the operator shall move the vehicle off the roadway to a place as close to the accident scene as practicable without obstructing traffic”
In the days after
Whether you must file a report yourself
If no officer investigates the crash, the driver must file a written accident report with the Kentucky State Police within 10 days when property damage is more than $500.
“shall file a written report of the accident with the department within ten (10) days of occurrence of the accident upon forms provided by the department”
Getting a copy of the crash report
Order an official Kentucky State Police collision report online through the BuyCrash portal.
Who pays for the damage
Kentucky is a choice no fault state. By default, your own car insurance pays basic medical and wage loss benefits after a crash no matter who was at fault, and you can only sue for pain and suffering once a threshold is met. A driver can instead file a written rejection of this limit with the Department of Insurance before a crash happens, which keeps their full right to sue like in a regular at fault state.
“shall...be deemed to have accepted the provisions of this subtitle, and in particular those provisions which are contained in this section”
Insurance rules in Kentucky
What insurance every driver must carry
Kentucky drivers must carry at least $25,000 in liability coverage per person, $50,000 per crash, and $25,000 for property damage, or a single combined limit of $60,000.
“Split limits liability coverage of not less than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) for all damages arising out of bodily injury sustained by any one (1) person, and not less than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000)”
Personal injury protection (PIP)
Kentucky requires every car insurance policy to include basic reparation benefits, which pay up to $10,000 total for medical bills and lost wages after a crash, no matter who was at fault.
“The maximum amount of basic reparation benefits payable for all economic loss resulting from injury to any one (1) person as the result of one (1) accident shall be ten thousand dollars ($10,000)”
When you can sue the other driver
You can only sue the other driver for pain and suffering if your medical expenses are more than $1,000, or your injury is a permanent disfigurement, a broken bone, loss of a body part, a permanent injury, permanent loss of a body function, or death. This does not apply if you filed a written rejection of the no fault limits before the crash.
“a plaintiff may recover damages in tort for pain, suffering, mental anguish and inconvenience because of bodily injury, sickness or disease...only in the event that the benefits which are payable for such injury as "medical expense"...exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000)”
If the other driver has no insurance
Kentucky insurers must include uninsured motorist coverage in every auto policy, but a named insured can reject it in writing.
“provided that any named insured shall have the right to reject in writing such coverage”
Medical payments coverage
Kentucky does not have a separate medical payments coverage to buy. Medical expenses are covered by the state's required basic reparation benefits (basic PIP, at least $10,000 per person), and buying higher benefit amounts (added reparation benefits) is optional.
“Kentucky requires basic PIP coverage on all motor vehicles except motorcycles. Higher benefits and deductibles are optional.”
If an insurance company treats you unfairly
File a complaint against an insurance company with the Kentucky Department of Insurance online.
“There are different types of complaints that are accepted by the Department of Insurance. The Division of Consumer Protection investigates these complaints”
The deadline rules, word for word
Deadline to sue for injuries
For injuries from a car crash, you generally have 2 years to sue, counted from the injury, the death, or the date of your last basic reparation benefit payment, whichever is latest.
“An action for tort liability not abolished by KRS 304.39-060 may be commenced not later than two (2) years after the injury, or the death, or the date of issuance of the last basic or added reparation payment”
Deadline to sue for car damage
You have 2 years to sue over vehicle or property damage from a car crash in Kentucky.
“An action for the taking, detaining or injuring of personal property, including an action for specific recovery shall be commenced within two (2) years from the time the cause of action accrued”
Deadline for a wrongful death claim
For a death from a car crash, a lawsuit must generally be filed within 2 years after the death or after the last basic reparation benefit payment, whichever is later.
“An action for tort liability not abolished by KRS 304.39-060 may be commenced not later than two (2) years after the injury, or the death, or the date of issuance of the last basic or added reparation payment”
If a government vehicle or road was involved
If a state government vehicle or road is involved, you must file your claim with the Kentucky Board of Claims within 1 year of the crash for property damage, or within 2 years for a personal injury.
“All claims must be filed with the board within one (1) year from the time the claim for relief accrued”
Sources on this page
Each one was opened and checked on September 17, 2026.
- KRS 304.39-060(1)
- KRS 304.39-020(2)
- KRS 411.182(3)
- KRS 304.39-230(6)
- KRS 413.125
- KRS 49.120(1)
- KRS 189.635(3)(a)
- KRS 304.39-110(1)(a)
- KRS 304.20-020(1)
- KRS 304.39-020; KRS 304.39-040; KRS 304.39-140(5)
- KRS 189.580(1)(a)
- https://buycrash.lexisnexisrisk.com/ui/home
- https://insurance.ky.gov/ppc/forms/complaints_home.aspx
- Ky. SCR 3.130(1.5)(c)
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.