Traffic Accident Settlements

This article looks at a few key Kentucky laws related to car accident claims and settlements, including time limits for filing a lawsuit, and how your claim might be affected if you’re found to be partially at fault for causing the accident. Read on for the details. (Note: If you’re looking for more in-depth information on car accident settlements and how to value a claim, visit our Car Accident Settlements section.)

Time Limits for Bringing a Lawsuit in Kentucky

Kentucky, like every state, has enacted laws that limit the time in which you may file a lawsuit. These laws are called “statutes of limitations,” and the time limit will usually differ depending on the kind of case you’re bringing. Kentucky has some of the shortest statutes of limitations of any state. The relevant deadlines for car accident suits are:

one year after the car accident, for filing a personal injury lawsuit (Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 413.080(1))
two years after the accident, for filing a lawsuit for property damage (i.e. damage to a vehicle) (Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 413.125)

Keep in mind that these time limits apply to filing a lawsuit after a car accident -- not to filing an insurance claim. But it’s a good idea to make sure that any insurance claim is filed well before the above deadlines expire. That’s because if settlement negotiations break down, you’ll want to have plenty of time to use the fallback option of filing a personal injury lawsuit in court (or at least threaten to use it in an attempt to get some leverage in negotiations). Bottom line: after a car accident, your safest bet is to get any insurance claim filed as soon as possible in order to protect your rights.

However, you should know that if your car accident involved the government in any way (a city bus rear-ended you, or the accident happened on government property, for example) you’ll need to follow a different set of rules when filing a claim against the government. You’ll have to make sure to get your paperwork in pretty quickly, according to the specific procedure set by the government agency involved in the accident. Learn more about claims against the government in Accidents Involving the Government: Claim Basics (link takes you to our companion site, www.personalinjurylawyer.com).

Comparative Fault Rules in Kentucky

Different states follow different rules for how to handle comparative fault -- situations in which each party in some way was at fault for an accident. In Kentucky, after a car accident you can recover compensation from any other at-fault party, regardless of the degree of your own fault. BUT any compensation you recover will be reduced by your percentage of fault. In legalese, this means Kentucky is a “pure comparative negligence” state.

It is important to understand how Kentucky’s system of comparative fault works even if you are only trying to negotiate with an insurance company. Not only do the comparative fault rules bind Kentucky judges and juries in a formal lawsuit (if you get to that stage of a dispute), but any insurance claim adjuster will consider those rules as well when evaluating your case. When evaluating a claim, an insurance adjuster usually thinks in terms of what could happen should the case go to court. Keep in mind that there is no empirical way to apportion fault, so any determination will ultimately depend on your ability to negotiate with a claim adjuster or convince a judge or jury of your side of the story.

Let’s take a look at an example to see how Kentucky’s “pure comparative negligence” rule would be applied in real life. Say you’re in a car accident where an oncoming driver makes a left turn directly in front of you while you are driving a few miles over the speed limit, resulting in a collision. After negotiating with an insurance adjuster, it is determined that you are 20% at fault and the other driver is 80% at fault. For the ease of math, we’ll say that your total damages are $10,000. Under Kentucky’s comparative fault rules, you are entitled to $8,000 from the other driver ($10,000 in damages minus the 20% of your own liability).

Car Insurance Requirements in Kentucky

Kentucky laws on car insurance may also come into play after a car accident. For everything you need to know about car insurance in Kentucky -- including the minimum amounts of coverage required for registered vehicles in operation in the state -- check out our companion article Car Insurance Laws in Kentucky.