Kansas Personal Injury Laws: Deadlines to Sue, Fault Rules and Damage Caps
Kansas injury rules: deadline to sue, medical malpractice and wrongful death time limits, comparative fault, damage caps, dog bites and auto insurance minimums.
Quick answers for Kansas
- Deadline to sue for an injury
- A lawsuit for injury to the rights of another not arising from a contract (which includes personal injury) must be filed within two years. Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-513(a)(4), (b)
- Fault rule (comparative negligence)
- Modified comparative negligence (50% bar). An injured party can recover only if his or her negligence was less than the negligence of the party or parties being sued; damages are reduced in proportion to his or her negligence. Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-258a(a)
- Wrongful death deadline
- A wrongful death lawsuit must be filed within two years. Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-513(a)(5)
- Minimum car insurance
- Kansas is a no-fault state. Policies must provide liability coverage of at least $25,000 for injury or death of one person, $50,000 for two or more people in one accident, and $25,000 for property damage (25/50/25), plus personal injury protection, including at least $4,500 in medical… Kan. Stat. Ann. §§ 40-3107, 40-3103(k), 40-3117
Last verified: 2026-10-27
Deadlines to file
| Deadline to sue for an injury | A lawsuit for injury to the rights of another not arising from a contract (which includes personal injury) must be filed within two years. The time generally starts when the act first causes substantial injury, or when the injury becomes reasonably ascertainable if that is later, but no lawsuit may be filed more than 10 years after the act that caused it. |
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| Deadline to sue for property damage | A lawsuit for taking, detaining or injuring personal property, or for trespass on real property, must be filed within two years, subject to the same accrual rule and 10-year outer limit. |
| Medical malpractice deadline | A claim arising from a health care provider's professional services must be filed within two years. The claim accrues at the time of the act, unless the injury is not reasonably ascertainable until later, in which case the two years starts when it becomes reasonably ascertainable; but no action may be filed more than four years after the act. |
| Wrongful death deadline | A wrongful death lawsuit must be filed within two years. Source: Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-513(a)(5) |
| Suing the government | Before suing a city, county or other municipality (or its employee) under the Kansas Tort Claims Act, the claimant must file a written notice with the municipality's clerk or governing body describing the facts, the injury and the amount of damages requested. No lawsuit may be started until the claim is denied or 120 days pass. Liability under the Act is capped at $500,000 for all claims from a single occurrence, and punitive damages and pre-judgment interest are not allowed. The official annotations note that the notice requirement applies to suits against municipalities, not to suits against municipal employees individually. |
Fault and damages
| Fault rule (comparative negligence) | Modified comparative negligence (50% bar). An injured party can recover only if his or her negligence was less than the negligence of the party or parties being sued; damages are reduced in proportion to his or her negligence. In a wrongful death case, the deceased person's negligence is imputed to the person claiming damages. Source: Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-258a(a) |
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| Damage caps | In wrongful death cases, damages other than the heirs' pecuniary (financial) losses may not exceed $250,000 in total, plus costs; the jury is not told about the limit. The statutes also contain a cap on non-economic damages in personal injury cases ($350,000 for claims accruing on or after July 1, 2022), but the Revisor's annotations to that section note that the Kansas Supreme Court held this cap to be an unconstitutional violation of the right to trial by jury in Hilburn v. Enerpipe Ltd. (2019). |
| Medical malpractice caps | Kansas does not have a separate malpractice-only cap in the sections reviewed. The general personal injury non-economic cap in § 60-19a02 ($350,000 for claims accruing on or after July 1, 2022) covers actions for personal injury or death, but the official annotations report the Kansas Supreme Court held it unconstitutional in Hilburn v. Enerpipe Ltd. (2019). The $250,000 limit on non-pecuniary wrongful death damages in § 60-1903 applies to wrongful death claims. |
| Punitive damages | The plaintiff must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant acted toward the plaintiff with willful or wanton conduct, fraud or malice. The jury decides whether to allow punitive damages, and the court sets the amount in a separate proceeding. The award generally may not exceed the lesser of the defendant's highest annual gross income in the prior five years or $5 million; if the misconduct's profitability exceeds that limit, the court may award up to 1.5 times the profit. An employer is liable for an employee's acts only if the conduct was authorized or ratified. Source: Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-3702 |
Wrongful death
| Who can sue for wrongful death | Any one of the deceased person's heirs at law who suffered a loss because of the death may bring the action. Other heirs who claim damage may intervene. The action is for the benefit of all heirs who suffered a loss, whether or not they join. Source: Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-1902 |
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| Wrongful death deadline | A wrongful death lawsuit must be filed within two years. Source: Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-513(a)(5) |
Car accidents and dog bites
| Reporting a crash to police | If no police officer is at the scene, the driver (or any occupant 18 or older) must immediately report the crash to the nearest police authority by the quickest available means when there is apparent property damage of $1,000 or more, when anyone is injured or killed, or when the people entitled to the driver's information are not present or able to receive it. Officers who investigate crashes with injury, death or apparent total damage of $1,000 or more forward a written report to the Kansas Department of Transportation within 10 days (K.S.A. 8-1611). Source: K.S.A. 8-1604(b) |
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| Crash report to the DMV | Kansas does not set a routine driver-filed crash report by statute; the state division may require a driver or owner to file a written accident report whenever it considers this necessary to meet another legal requirement. The investigating officer's written report goes to the Kansas Department of Transportation within 10 days after the investigation for crashes with injury, death, or apparent total property damage of $1,000 or more. Officer report rule: https://www.ksrevisor.org/statutes/chapters/ch08/008_016_0011.html Source: K.S.A. 8-1607, 8-1611 |
| Leaving the scene (hit and run) | A driver in a crash causing injury, death, or damage to an attended vehicle or property must stop at or near the scene and stay until giving name, address and vehicle registration number, and on request showing a driver license and the liability insurer's name and policy number, including to police. The driver must try right away to find out whether anyone was hurt and give reasonable help, including arranging transport for medical care. Penalties for leaving the scene: total damage under $1,000 is a misdemeanor; injury or damage of $1,000 or more is a class A person misdemeanor; great bodily harm is a severity level 8 person felony; a death is a severity level 6 person felony (level 4 if the driver knew or should have known of injury or death; level 3 for more than one death). The license may be revoked. Information and aid duties: https://www.ksrevisor.org/statutes/chapters/ch08/008_016_0004.html Source: K.S.A. 8-1602, 8-1604 |
| Minimum car insurance | Kansas is a no-fault state. Policies must provide liability coverage of at least $25,000 for injury or death of one person, $50,000 for two or more people in one accident, and $25,000 for property damage (25/50/25), plus personal injury protection, including at least $4,500 in medical benefits. An injured person can sue an at-fault driver for pain, suffering and other non-economic loss only if medical treatment is worth $2,000 or more, or the injury involves permanent disfigurement, certain fractures, loss of a body member, permanent injury, permanent loss of a bodily function, or death. |
Slip, trip and fall injuries
| Claims against a city or county | Before suing a Kansas city, county or other municipality (or its employee) under the Kansas Tort Claims Act, the injured person must file a written notice with the municipality's clerk or governing body giving the claimant's name and address, the date, time, place and circumstances of the event, any officer or employee involved, the nature and extent of the injury, and the amount of damages requested. No lawsuit may be started until the municipality denies the claim or 120 days pass (the claim is deemed denied if not approved in full within 120 days). The suit must be filed within the normal civil statute of limitations, but the claimant has at least 90 days after the denial to sue. Liability under the Act is capped at $500,000 for all claims from a single occurrence, and punitive damages and pre-judgment interest are not allowed. The notice rule does not apply to claims arising from childhood sexual abuse (12-105b(d)(2)); the cap is subject to K.S.A. 75-6111. |
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| Injuries on land used for recreation | A landowner who makes land available to the public for recreation owes no duty to keep it safe for recreational entry or use and no duty to warn of dangerous conditions, uses, structures or activities, and taking safety steps or posting warnings does not cost the owner this protection. Allowing recreational use does not promise that the land is safe, does not make the user an invitee or licensee, and does not make the owner liable for injuries caused by the user's acts. The law does not limit liability for a willful or malicious failure to guard or warn against a dangerous condition, use, structure or activity, or where an owner of nonagricultural land charges people for recreational use (lease payments from the State or a subdivision do not count as a charge). Source: K.S.A. 58-3203, 58-3204, 58-3206 |
Motorcycle, pedestrian, bicycle, Uber/Lyft and truck crashes
| Motorcycle helmet law | Kansas requires a helmet meeting federal (NHTSA) guidelines only for people under 18 operating or riding a motorcycle or motorized bicycle, and no one may allow a minor to ride without one. Every motorcycle operator must wear shatterproof eye protection (glasses, goggles or a face shield) unless the motorcycle has a windscreen at least 10 inches high, and passengers under 18 must wear eye protection. The rules do not apply in an enclosed cab, an autocycle, a golf cart or a three-wheeled cargo 'truckster.' The statute does not say whether going without a helmet affects damages. Source: K.S.A. 8-1598 |
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| Lane splitting | Lane splitting is illegal in Kansas: no person may operate a motorcycle between lanes of traffic or between adjacent lines or rows of vehicles, and a motorcyclist may not pass in the same lane occupied by the vehicle being passed. Motorcycles are entitled to full use of a lane and may not ride more than two abreast in a single lane; police officers performing official duties are exempt from the passing and between-lanes rules. Source: K.S.A. 8-1595 |
| Pedestrian right-of-way | Where traffic signals are not in place or not working, drivers must yield, slowing or stopping if needed, to a pedestrian crossing within a crosswalk who is on the driver's half of the road or approaching so closely from the other half as to be in danger, and may not pass a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk for a pedestrian. A pedestrian may not suddenly leave a curb into the path of a vehicle so close as to be an immediate hazard. A pedestrian crossing anywhere other than a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection must yield to all vehicles, may cross only in a marked crosswalk between adjacent signalized intersections, and may not cross diagonally unless traffic-control devices allow it. Source: K.S.A. 8-1533, 8-1534 |
| Bicycle laws | A person riding a bicycle on a roadway has all the rights and duties of a vehicle driver, except as the bicycle sections provide otherwise and except provisions that by their nature cannot apply. A driver overtaking a bicycle going the same direction must pass to the left at a distance of not less than three feet and not move back right until safely clear, and may pass a bicycle in a no-passing zone only when it is safe to do so. Source: K.S.A. 8-1587, 8-1516(c) |
| Uber and Lyft insurance | Transportation network company (Uber/Lyft type) drivers, vehicle owners or the company must maintain primary auto insurance that recognizes TNC driving. While logged on and available but not on a prearranged ride: at least $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for death and bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage, plus Kansas's minimum required coverages. During a prearranged ride: at least $1,000,000 for death, bodily injury and property damage, plus the minimum required coverages. The coverage may come from the driver, the owner, the company or a combination; if the driver's insurance lapses or falls short, the company's insurance must cover from the first dollar and defend the claim. Source: K.S.A. 8-2708(a)-(e) |
| Truck safety and insurance rules | Public and private motor carriers operating on Kansas highways must follow safety rules adopted by the Kansas Corporation Commission, which include keeping vehicles in safe condition, hours of service fixed by the commission, accident reporting and federal-consistent hazardous-materials rules; the commission's rules adopt 49 C.F.R. parts 390-399 by reference, with listed intrastate exemptions (for example certain farmers hauling their own livestock or farm products). Intrastate drivers must be at least 18. A Kansas minimum insurance amount for intrastate trucks was not verified; interstate carriers must meet federal minimums (49 C.F.R. 387.9). Source: K.S.A. 66-1,129(a), (c) |
Construction accidents
| Construction site injuries | Kansas workers' comp is generally the exclusive remedy: no employer or co-employee is liable for an injury for which comp is recoverable, except as the Act provides. A worker may still take comp and sue a negligent third party other than the employer or a co-employee. A construction design professional retained on the project is not liable for injuries from the employer's failure to follow safety standards unless it contractually assumed responsibility for safety, but this protection does not cover negligent preparation of design plans or specifications. A principal that contracts out part of its trade or business is liable for comp to the contractor's workers as if it employed them directly. |
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Personal Injury & Wrongful Death FAQ
What is the statute of limitations for personal injury in Kansas?
A lawsuit for injury to the rights of another not arising from a contract (which includes personal injury) must be filed within two years. The time generally starts when the act first causes substantial injury, or when the injury becomes reasonably ascertainable if that is later, but no lawsuit may be filed more than 10 years after the act that caused it.
How long do you have to sue for property damage in Kansas?
A lawsuit for taking, detaining or injuring personal property, or for trespass on real property, must be filed within two years, subject to the same accrual rule and 10-year outer limit.
What is the statute of limitations for medical malpractice in Kansas?
A claim arising from a health care provider's professional services must be filed within two years. The claim accrues at the time of the act, unless the injury is not reasonably ascertainable until later, in which case the two years starts when it becomes reasonably ascertainable; but no action may be filed more than four years after the act.
How long do you have to file a wrongful death lawsuit in Kansas?
A wrongful death lawsuit must be filed within two years.
Who can file a wrongful death lawsuit in Kansas?
Any one of the deceased person's heirs at law who suffered a loss because of the death may bring the action. Other heirs who claim damage may intervene. The action is for the benefit of all heirs who suffered a loss, whether or not they join.
Can you recover damages if you were partly at fault in Kansas?
Modified comparative negligence (50% bar). An injured party can recover only if his or her negligence was less than the negligence of the party or parties being sued; damages are reduced in proportion to his or her negligence. In a wrongful death case, the deceased person's negligence is imputed to the person claiming damages.
Does Kansas cap damages in personal injury cases?
In wrongful death cases, damages other than the heirs' pecuniary (financial) losses may not exceed $250,000 in total, plus costs; the jury is not told about the limit. The statutes also contain a cap on non-economic damages in personal injury cases ($350,000 for claims accruing on or after July 1, 2022), but the Revisor's annotations to that section note that the Kansas Supreme Court held this cap to be an unconstitutional violation of the right to trial by jury in Hilburn v. Enerpipe Ltd. (2019).
Is there a cap on medical malpractice damages in Kansas?
Kansas does not have a separate malpractice-only cap in the sections reviewed. The general personal injury non-economic cap in § 60-19a02 ($350,000 for claims accruing on or after July 1, 2022) covers actions for personal injury or death, but the official annotations report the Kansas Supreme Court held it unconstitutional in Hilburn v. Enerpipe Ltd. (2019). The $250,000 limit on non-pecuniary wrongful death damages in § 60-1903 applies to wrongful death claims.
When can you get punitive damages in Kansas?
The plaintiff must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the defendant acted toward the plaintiff with willful or wanton conduct, fraud or malice. The jury decides whether to allow punitive damages, and the court sets the amount in a separate proceeding. The award generally may not exceed the lesser of the defendant's highest annual gross income in the prior five years or $5 million; if the misconduct's profitability exceeds that limit, the court may award up to 1.5 times the profit. An employer is liable for an employee's acts only if the conduct was authorized or ratified.
How do you file an injury claim against the government in Kansas?
Before suing a city, county or other municipality (or its employee) under the Kansas Tort Claims Act, the claimant must file a written notice with the municipality's clerk or governing body describing the facts, the injury and the amount of damages requested. No lawsuit may be started until the claim is denied or 120 days pass. Liability under the Act is capped at $500,000 for all claims from a single occurrence, and punitive damages and pre-judgment interest are not allowed.
What is the minimum car insurance required in Kansas?
Kansas is a no-fault state. Policies must provide liability coverage of at least $25,000 for injury or death of one person, $50,000 for two or more people in one accident, and $25,000 for property damage (25/50/25), plus personal injury protection, including at least $4,500 in medical benefits. An injured person can sue an at-fault driver for pain, suffering and other non-economic loss only if medical treatment is worth $2,000 or more, or the injury involves permanent disfigurement, certain fractures, loss of a body member, permanent injury, permanent loss of a bodily function, or death.
When do you have to report a car accident to the police in Kansas?
If no police officer is at the scene, the driver (or any occupant 18 or older) must immediately report the crash to the nearest police authority by the quickest available means when there is apparent property damage of $1,000 or more, when anyone is injured or killed, or when the people entitled to the driver's information are not present or able to receive it.
Do you have to report a car accident to the DMV in Kansas?
Kansas does not set a routine driver-filed crash report by statute; the state division may require a driver or owner to file a written accident report whenever it considers this necessary to meet another legal requirement. The investigating officer's written report goes to the Kansas Department of Transportation within 10 days after the investigation for crashes with injury, death, or apparent total property damage of $1,000 or more.
What are your duties after a car accident in Kansas?
A driver in a crash causing injury, death, or damage to an attended vehicle or property must stop at or near the scene and stay until giving name, address and vehicle registration number, and on request showing a driver license and the liability insurer's name and policy number, including to police. The driver must try right away to find out whether anyone was hurt and give reasonable help, including arranging transport for medical care. Penalties for leaving the scene: total damage under $1,000 is a misdemeanor; injury or damage of $1,000 or more is a class A person misdemeanor; great bodily harm is a severity level 8 person felony; a death is a severity level 6 person felony (level 4 if the driver knew or should have known of injury or death; level 3 for more than one death). The license may be revoked.
How long do you have to file a claim against a city or county in Kansas?
Before suing a Kansas city, county or other municipality (or its employee) under the Kansas Tort Claims Act, the injured person must file a written notice with the municipality's clerk or governing body giving the claimant's name and address, the date, time, place and circumstances of the event, any officer or employee involved, the nature and extent of the injury, and the amount of damages requested. No lawsuit may be started until the municipality denies the claim or 120 days pass (the claim is deemed denied if not approved in full within 120 days). The suit must be filed within the normal civil statute of limitations, but the claimant has at least 90 days after the denial to sue. Liability under the Act is capped at $500,000 for all claims from a single occurrence, and punitive damages and pre-judgment interest are not allowed.
Is a landowner liable for injuries on land used for recreation in Kansas?
A landowner who makes land available to the public for recreation owes no duty to keep it safe for recreational entry or use and no duty to warn of dangerous conditions, uses, structures or activities, and taking safety steps or posting warnings does not cost the owner this protection. Allowing recreational use does not promise that the land is safe, does not make the user an invitee or licensee, and does not make the owner liable for injuries caused by the user's acts. The law does not limit liability for a willful or malicious failure to guard or warn against a dangerous condition, use, structure or activity, or where an owner of nonagricultural land charges people for recreational use (lease payments from the State or a subdivision do not count as a charge).
Do you have to wear a motorcycle helmet in Kansas?
Kansas requires a helmet meeting federal (NHTSA) guidelines only for people under 18 operating or riding a motorcycle or motorized bicycle, and no one may allow a minor to ride without one. Every motorcycle operator must wear shatterproof eye protection (glasses, goggles or a face shield) unless the motorcycle has a windscreen at least 10 inches high, and passengers under 18 must wear eye protection. The rules do not apply in an enclosed cab, an autocycle, a golf cart or a three-wheeled cargo 'truckster.' The statute does not say whether going without a helmet affects damages.
Is lane splitting legal in Kansas?
Lane splitting is illegal in Kansas: no person may operate a motorcycle between lanes of traffic or between adjacent lines or rows of vehicles, and a motorcyclist may not pass in the same lane occupied by the vehicle being passed. Motorcycles are entitled to full use of a lane and may not ride more than two abreast in a single lane; police officers performing official duties are exempt from the passing and between-lanes rules.
Who has the right of way, a pedestrian or a driver, in Kansas?
Where traffic signals are not in place or not working, drivers must yield, slowing or stopping if needed, to a pedestrian crossing within a crosswalk who is on the driver's half of the road or approaching so closely from the other half as to be in danger, and may not pass a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk for a pedestrian. A pedestrian may not suddenly leave a curb into the path of a vehicle so close as to be an immediate hazard. A pedestrian crossing anywhere other than a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection must yield to all vehicles, may cross only in a marked crosswalk between adjacent signalized intersections, and may not cross diagonally unless traffic-control devices allow it.
What are the bicycle laws in Kansas?
A person riding a bicycle on a roadway has all the rights and duties of a vehicle driver, except as the bicycle sections provide otherwise and except provisions that by their nature cannot apply. A driver overtaking a bicycle going the same direction must pass to the left at a distance of not less than three feet and not move back right until safely clear, and may pass a bicycle in a no-passing zone only when it is safe to do so.
What insurance must Uber and Lyft drivers have in Kansas?
Transportation network company (Uber/Lyft type) drivers, vehicle owners or the company must maintain primary auto insurance that recognizes TNC driving. While logged on and available but not on a prearranged ride: at least $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for death and bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage, plus Kansas's minimum required coverages. During a prearranged ride: at least $1,000,000 for death, bodily injury and property damage, plus the minimum required coverages. The coverage may come from the driver, the owner, the company or a combination; if the driver's insurance lapses or falls short, the company's insurance must cover from the first dollar and defend the claim.
What safety and insurance rules apply to trucks in Kansas?
Public and private motor carriers operating on Kansas highways must follow safety rules adopted by the Kansas Corporation Commission, which include keeping vehicles in safe condition, hours of service fixed by the commission, accident reporting and federal-consistent hazardous-materials rules; the commission's rules adopt 49 C.F.R. parts 390-399 by reference, with listed intrastate exemptions (for example certain farmers hauling their own livestock or farm products). Intrastate drivers must be at least 18. A Kansas minimum insurance amount for intrastate trucks was not verified; interstate carriers must meet federal minimums (49 C.F.R. 387.9).
Can you sue for a construction accident in Kansas?
Kansas workers' comp is generally the exclusive remedy: no employer or co-employee is liable for an injury for which comp is recoverable, except as the Act provides. A worker may still take comp and sue a negligent third party other than the employer or a co-employee. A construction design professional retained on the project is not liable for injuries from the employer's failure to follow safety standards unless it contractually assumed responsibility for safety, but this protection does not cover negligent preparation of design plans or specifications. A principal that contracts out part of its trade or business is liable for comp to the contractor's workers as if it employed them directly.
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General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.