Missouri Personal Injury Laws: Deadlines to Sue, Fault Rules and Damage Caps
Missouri 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 Missouri
- Deadline to sue for an injury
- Five years. Actions for "any other injury to the person or rights of another, not arising on contract" and not otherwise listed must be filed within five years. Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.120(4)
- Fault rule (comparative negligence)
- Pure comparative fault. In product liability claims, the statute expressly applies pure comparative fault: the plaintiff's fault reduces the award proportionately but does not bar recovery. Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 537.765, 273.036
- Wrongful death deadline
- Three years after the cause of action accrues. Time when a defendant is absent from the state does not count, and a plaintiff whose timely case ends in a nonsuit may refile within one year. Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.100
- Minimum car insurance
- Owners must maintain financial responsibility; a motor vehicle liability policy must cover at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage. Mo. Rev. Stat. §§ 303.025, 303.190
Last verified: 2026-10-27
Deadlines to file
| Deadline to sue for an injury | Five years. Actions for "any other injury to the person or rights of another, not arising on contract" and not otherwise listed must be filed within five years. Some injury claims have shorter periods under other sections (for example, medical malpractice, two years; wrongful death, three years). Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.120(4) |
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| Deadline to sue for property damage | Five years for taking, detaining or injuring goods or personal property. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.120(4) |
| Medical malpractice deadline | Two years from the date of the negligent act. Exceptions: for a foreign object left in the body or a negligent failure to report medical test results, two years from when the problem was or should have been discovered; a minor has until age 20. In no event may a malpractice action be filed more than ten years after the act, or two years after a minor's 18th birthday, whichever is later. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.105 |
| Wrongful death deadline | Three years after the cause of action accrues. Time when a defendant is absent from the state does not count, and a plaintiff whose timely case ends in a nonsuit may refile within one year. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.100 |
| Suing the government | Missouri keeps sovereign immunity except as waived. Immunity is waived for injuries from public employees' negligent operation of motor vehicles and from dangerous conditions of public property, and to the extent of insurance or self-insurance purchased. Liability is limited to base amounts of $300,000 per person and $2,000,000 per occurrence, adjusted annually for inflation (current values published in the Missouri Register), with no punitive damages. For injuries from a defective street, sidewalk or bridge in a third- or fourth-class city, written notice must be given to the mayor within 90 days. Waivers: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=537.600 ; city notice: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=77.600 |
Fault and damages
| Fault rule (comparative negligence) | Pure comparative fault. In product liability claims, the statute expressly applies pure comparative fault: the plaintiff's fault reduces the award proportionately but does not bar recovery. Missouri applies the same pure comparative fault approach to negligence cases generally through court decisions. In dog-bite cases, damages are reduced by the injured person's percentage of fault. |
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| Damage caps | No general cap on damages in ordinary injury cases was found. Caps apply to noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases, to punitive damages (the greater of $500,000 or five times the net judgment), and to claims against the state and local governments. |
| Medical malpractice caps | Yes. Noneconomic damages against health care providers are capped at a base of $400,000 for personal injury and $700,000 for catastrophic personal injury or death, regardless of the number of defendants. All wrongful death claimants count as one plaintiff. The caps increase by 1.7% every January 1, with the current values published in the Missouri Register by the Department of Commerce and Insurance. The jury is not told about the cap. Punitive damages against a health care provider require clear and convincing proof of intentional harm or malicious misconduct. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. § 538.210 |
| Punitive damages | Allowed only on clear and convincing proof that the defendant intentionally harmed the plaintiff without just cause or acted with deliberate and flagrant disregard for the safety of others. The initial complaint may not ask for punitive damages; the plaintiff must get court permission later. Punitive damages are capped at the greater of $500,000 or five times the net judgment, except when the state is the plaintiff or the defendant pleads guilty to or is convicted of a related felony. Public entities are not liable for punitive damages. Cap: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=510.265 |
Wrongful death
| Who can sue for wrongful death | In order of priority: (1) the spouse, children, descendants of deceased children, or parents; (2) if none of those, the brothers or sisters (or their descendants) who can show a right to damages; (3) if none, a plaintiff ad litem appointed by the court at the request of someone entitled to share in the recovery. Only one wrongful death action may be brought against any one defendant for a death. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.080 |
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| Wrongful death deadline | Three years after the cause of action accrues. Time when a defendant is absent from the state does not count, and a plaintiff whose timely case ends in a nonsuit may refile within one year. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.100 |
Car accidents and dog bites
| Reporting a crash to police | Missouri's leaving-the-scene law requires a driver in a crash causing injury, death, or damage to another's property to stop and give their name, home address, vehicle registration or plate number, and driver license number to the other party or to a law enforcement officer, or, if no officer is nearby, to the nearest law enforcement agency. No separate general rule requiring drivers to call police after a crash, with a dollar threshold, was found in the sections reviewed. Source: RSMo § 577.060.1 |
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| Crash report to the DMV | Under Missouri's motor vehicle financial responsibility law, a written report must be made to the Director of Revenue within 30 days after a crash on a street, highway, or public parking lot or facility that involves an uninsured motorist and in which someone is killed or injured or any one person's property damage exceeds $500. An owner or operator who does not carry liability insurance must also report any crash within 30 days. The report is on the director's form. If the operator is physically unable, the owner must report within 30 days after learning of the crash (a late report due to incapacity needs a doctor's certificate). After a report, the director may require uninsured operators and owners to post security or face license and registration suspension (RSMo § 303.030). Source: RSMo § 303.040 |
| Leaving the scene (hit and run) | A driver who knows they were in a crash causing injury, death, or damage to another person's property commits the offense of leaving the scene if they leave without stopping and giving their name, address, registration or plate number, and driver license number to the other party or police. Leaving the scene is a class A misdemeanor; it is a class E felony if someone was physically injured, damage to another's property exceeded $1,000, or the person has a prior leaving-the-scene conviction; and a class D felony if someone died. The section also applies to vessel operators. A specific duty to give aid to the injured was not found in § 577.060. Source: RSMo § 577.060 |
| Minimum car insurance | Owners must maintain financial responsibility; a motor vehicle liability policy must cover at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage. Requirement to maintain coverage: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=303.025 |
| Dog bites | Strict liability. The owner or possessor of a dog that bites a person without provocation, while the person is on public property or lawfully on private property, is strictly liable for the damages, regardless of the dog's past viciousness or the owner's knowledge. Owners are also strictly liable for damage to property or livestock caused by their dogs. Damages are reduced by the injured person's percentage of fault, and the owner may also be fined up to $1,000. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. § 273.036 |
Slip, trip and fall injuries
| Sidewalk falls: who is responsible | A public entity in Missouri can be sued for an injury caused by a dangerous condition of its property, such as a sidewalk, only if the person proves the condition was dangerous, directly caused the injury, and created a foreseeable risk of that kind of injury, and that a public employee's negligence created the condition or the entity had actual or constructive notice of it in time to protect against it. Before suing a third-class city, or a city of 100,000 or more people, for an injury from a defect in a bridge, street, sidewalk or thoroughfare, the injured person must give the mayor written notice within 90 days stating where and when the injury happened, its character and circumstances, and that damages will be claimed. The statutes read do not say whether the owner of property next to a public sidewalk is liable. §77.600: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=77.600 ; §82.210: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=82.210 |
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| Claims against a city or county | Missouri keeps sovereign immunity for the state and its political subdivisions except where waived, including for injuries from public employees' negligent driving and from dangerous conditions of public property, and to the extent of liability insurance or self-insurance. The base caps are $300,000 per person and $2,000,000 per occurrence, and no award above the limits may be made; the section also provides for inflation adjustments. Third-class cities and cities of 100,000 or more require written notice to the mayor within 90 days for injuries from defective streets, sidewalks or bridges; the sections read set no general notice-of-claim deadline for other local claims. §537.600: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=537.600 ; §77.600: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=77.600 ; §82.210: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=82.210 . State-government claims are covered in the injury topic. |
| Injuries on land used for recreation | A landowner owes no duty to people who enter without charge to keep the land safe for recreational use or to warn of natural or artificial conditions on it. The protection does not cover malicious or grossly negligent failure to guard or warn against a dangerous condition the owner knew or should have known about (or negligent failure to warn of an ultrahazardous condition), injuries to people who paid a charge to enter, or injuries in swimming pools, residential or farm areas, or land used mainly for commercial, industrial or mining purposes. §537.348: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=537.348 |
Motorcycle, pedestrian, bicycle, Uber/Lyft and truck crashes
| Motorcycle helmet law | Motorcycle and motortricycle operators and passengers under 26 must wear a helmet whenever the vehicle is moving, and so must operators 26 or older riding on an instruction permit; other adult riders are not required to wear one. Local governments may not impose their own helmet rules, and no one may be stopped just to check helmet compliance. The section does not say that not wearing a helmet reduces damages in a lawsuit. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. §302.020.2 |
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| Lane splitting | No Missouri statute read names lane splitting. On roads divided into lanes, the state traffic law requires a vehicle to be driven as nearly as practicable entirely within a single lane and not moved from that lane until the driver has made sure the move can be made safely. Missouri's statutes read do not separately address riding between lanes; how §304.015 applies to motorcycles is not stated in the statute. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. §304.015 |
| Pedestrian right-of-way | Missouri's Model Traffic Ordinance says that where traffic signals are not in place or working, a driver must yield (slowing or stopping if needed) to a pedestrian in a crosswalk on the driver's half of the road or approaching closely from the other half, and may not pass a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk for a pedestrian. A pedestrian crossing outside a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection must yield to all vehicles, must cross by the shortest route when not in a crosswalk, and may not suddenly step into the path of a vehicle too close to yield. §300.385: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=300.385 ; §300.390: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=300.390 . |
| Bicycle laws | A bicyclist on a street or highway has the rights and duties of a vehicle driver, except for special bicycle rules. A cyclist slower than traffic may ride on the shoulder and must ride in the same direction as traffic. A driver overtaking a bicycle must leave a safe distance and keep clearance until safely past; a violation is an infraction, or a class C misdemeanor if a crash results. The statute sets no specific number of feet, and the sections read do not set a helmet requirement. §307.191: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=307.191 ; §304.678: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=304.678 |
| Uber and Lyft insurance | While an Uber/Lyft-type (transportation network company) driver is logged on and available but not on a prearranged ride, primary insurance must be at least $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for death and bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage, plus uninsured motorist coverage. During a prearranged ride, liability coverage must be at least $1,000,000 for death, bodily injury and property damage, plus uninsured motorist coverage. If the driver's insurance lapses or falls short, the company's insurance must cover from the first dollar and defend the claim. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. §379.1702 |
| Truck safety and insurance rules | Missouri requires commercial motor vehicles (as defined in federal rules) to be equipped and operated as required by the federal motor carrier safety regulations, 49 CFR Parts 390 through 397 (which include hours of service and inspection, repair and maintenance), for both intrastate and interstate transportation, and the Department of Public Safety may adopt further safety rules. Federal minimum insurance for interstate carriers is in 49 CFR 387.9. Source: Mo. Rev. Stat. §307.400.1 |
Construction accidents
| Construction site injuries | Missouri's workers' compensation law sets the general rule for construction injuries. A covered employer must pay compensation regardless of fault and is released from all other liability, and the worker's rights under the law exclude other remedies; co-employees are also released unless they committed an affirmative negligent act that purposefully and dangerously caused or increased the risk of injury. When a third party is liable, the employer is subrogated to the worker's claim against that party and recoveries are shared under the statute. §287.150: https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=287.150 . No search for a scaffold-type statute was done; no absence claim is made. |
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Personal Injury & Wrongful Death FAQ
What is the statute of limitations for personal injury in Missouri?
Five years. Actions for "any other injury to the person or rights of another, not arising on contract" and not otherwise listed must be filed within five years.
How long do you have to sue for property damage in Missouri?
Five years for taking, detaining or injuring goods or personal property.
What is the statute of limitations for medical malpractice in Missouri?
Two years from the date of the negligent act. Exceptions: for a foreign object left in the body or a negligent failure to report medical test results, two years from when the problem was or should have been discovered; a minor has until age 20. In no event may a malpractice action be filed more than ten years after the act, or two years after a minor's 18th birthday, whichever is later.
How long do you have to file a wrongful death lawsuit in Missouri?
Three years after the cause of action accrues. Time when a defendant is absent from the state does not count, and a plaintiff whose timely case ends in a nonsuit may refile within one year.
Who can file a wrongful death lawsuit in Missouri?
In order of priority: (1) the spouse, children, descendants of deceased children, or parents; (2) if none of those, the brothers or sisters (or their descendants) who can show a right to damages; (3) if none, a plaintiff ad litem appointed by the court at the request of someone entitled to share in the recovery. Only one wrongful death action may be brought against any one defendant for a death.
Can you recover damages if you were partly at fault in Missouri?
Pure comparative fault. In product liability claims, the statute expressly applies pure comparative fault: the plaintiff's fault reduces the award proportionately but does not bar recovery. Missouri applies the same pure comparative fault approach to negligence cases generally through court decisions. In dog-bite cases, damages are reduced by the injured person's percentage of fault.
Does Missouri cap damages in personal injury cases?
No general cap on damages in ordinary injury cases was found. Caps apply to noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases, to punitive damages (the greater of $500,000 or five times the net judgment), and to claims against the state and local governments.
Is there a cap on medical malpractice damages in Missouri?
Yes. Noneconomic damages against health care providers are capped at a base of $400,000 for personal injury and $700,000 for catastrophic personal injury or death, regardless of the number of defendants. All wrongful death claimants count as one plaintiff. The caps increase by 1.7% every January 1, with the current values published in the Missouri Register by the Department of Commerce and Insurance. The jury is not told about the cap. Punitive damages against a health care provider require clear and convincing proof of intentional harm or malicious misconduct.
When can you get punitive damages in Missouri?
Allowed only on clear and convincing proof that the defendant intentionally harmed the plaintiff without just cause or acted with deliberate and flagrant disregard for the safety of others. The initial complaint may not ask for punitive damages; the plaintiff must get court permission later. Punitive damages are capped at the greater of $500,000 or five times the net judgment, except when the state is the plaintiff or the defendant pleads guilty to or is convicted of a related felony. Public entities are not liable for punitive damages.
How do you file an injury claim against the government in Missouri?
Missouri keeps sovereign immunity except as waived. Immunity is waived for injuries from public employees' negligent operation of motor vehicles and from dangerous conditions of public property, and to the extent of insurance or self-insurance purchased. Liability is limited to base amounts of $300,000 per person and $2,000,000 per occurrence, adjusted annually for inflation (current values published in the Missouri Register), with no punitive damages. For injuries from a defective street, sidewalk or bridge in a third- or fourth-class city, written notice must be given to the mayor within 90 days.
Is a dog owner liable for a dog bite in Missouri?
Strict liability. The owner or possessor of a dog that bites a person without provocation, while the person is on public property or lawfully on private property, is strictly liable for the damages, regardless of the dog's past viciousness or the owner's knowledge. Owners are also strictly liable for damage to property or livestock caused by their dogs. Damages are reduced by the injured person's percentage of fault, and the owner may also be fined up to $1,000.
What is the minimum car insurance required in Missouri?
Owners must maintain financial responsibility; a motor vehicle liability policy must cover at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage.
When do you have to report a car accident to the police in Missouri?
Missouri's leaving-the-scene law requires a driver in a crash causing injury, death, or damage to another's property to stop and give their name, home address, vehicle registration or plate number, and driver license number to the other party or to a law enforcement officer, or, if no officer is nearby, to the nearest law enforcement agency.
Do you have to report a car accident to the DMV in Missouri?
Under Missouri's motor vehicle financial responsibility law, a written report must be made to the Director of Revenue within 30 days after a crash on a street, highway, or public parking lot or facility that involves an uninsured motorist and in which someone is killed or injured or any one person's property damage exceeds $500. An owner or operator who does not carry liability insurance must also report any crash within 30 days. The report is on the director's form. If the operator is physically unable, the owner must report within 30 days after learning of the crash (a late report due to incapacity needs a doctor's certificate).
What are your duties after a car accident in Missouri?
A driver who knows they were in a crash causing injury, death, or damage to another person's property commits the offense of leaving the scene if they leave without stopping and giving their name, address, registration or plate number, and driver license number to the other party or police. Leaving the scene is a class A misdemeanor; it is a class E felony if someone was physically injured, damage to another's property exceeded $1,000, or the person has a prior leaving-the-scene conviction; and a class D felony if someone died.
Who is liable if you trip and fall on a sidewalk in Missouri?
A public entity in Missouri can be sued for an injury caused by a dangerous condition of its property, such as a sidewalk, only if the person proves the condition was dangerous, directly caused the injury, and created a foreseeable risk of that kind of injury, and that a public employee's negligence created the condition or the entity had actual or constructive notice of it in time to protect against it. Before suing a third-class city, or a city of 100,000 or more people, for an injury from a defect in a bridge, street, sidewalk or thoroughfare, the injured person must give the mayor written notice within 90 days stating where and when the injury happened, its character and circumstances, and that damages will be claimed. The statutes read do not say whether the owner of property next to a public sidewalk is liable.
How long do you have to file a claim against a city or county in Missouri?
Missouri keeps sovereign immunity for the state and its political subdivisions except where waived, including for injuries from public employees' negligent driving and from dangerous conditions of public property, and to the extent of liability insurance or self-insurance. The base caps are $300,000 per person and $2,000,000 per occurrence, and no award above the limits may be made; the section also provides for inflation adjustments. Third-class cities and cities of 100,000 or more require written notice to the mayor within 90 days for injuries from defective streets, sidewalks or bridges; the sections read set no general notice-of-claim deadline for other local claims.
Is a landowner liable for injuries on land used for recreation in Missouri?
A landowner owes no duty to people who enter without charge to keep the land safe for recreational use or to warn of natural or artificial conditions on it. The protection does not cover malicious or grossly negligent failure to guard or warn against a dangerous condition the owner knew or should have known about (or negligent failure to warn of an ultrahazardous condition), injuries to people who paid a charge to enter, or injuries in swimming pools, residential or farm areas, or land used mainly for commercial, industrial or mining purposes.
Do you have to wear a motorcycle helmet in Missouri?
Motorcycle and motortricycle operators and passengers under 26 must wear a helmet whenever the vehicle is moving, and so must operators 26 or older riding on an instruction permit; other adult riders are not required to wear one. Local governments may not impose their own helmet rules, and no one may be stopped just to check helmet compliance. The section does not say that not wearing a helmet reduces damages in a lawsuit.
Is lane splitting legal in Missouri?
No Missouri statute read names lane splitting. On roads divided into lanes, the state traffic law requires a vehicle to be driven as nearly as practicable entirely within a single lane and not moved from that lane until the driver has made sure the move can be made safely.
Who has the right of way, a pedestrian or a driver, in Missouri?
Missouri's Model Traffic Ordinance says that where traffic signals are not in place or working, a driver must yield (slowing or stopping if needed) to a pedestrian in a crosswalk on the driver's half of the road or approaching closely from the other half, and may not pass a vehicle stopped at a crosswalk for a pedestrian. A pedestrian crossing outside a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection must yield to all vehicles, must cross by the shortest route when not in a crosswalk, and may not suddenly step into the path of a vehicle too close to yield.
What are the bicycle laws in Missouri?
A bicyclist on a street or highway has the rights and duties of a vehicle driver, except for special bicycle rules. A cyclist slower than traffic may ride on the shoulder and must ride in the same direction as traffic. A driver overtaking a bicycle must leave a safe distance and keep clearance until safely past; a violation is an infraction, or a class C misdemeanor if a crash results. The statute sets no specific number of feet, and the sections read do not set a helmet requirement.
What insurance must Uber and Lyft drivers have in Missouri?
While an Uber/Lyft-type (transportation network company) driver is logged on and available but not on a prearranged ride, primary insurance must be at least $50,000 per person and $100,000 per incident for death and bodily injury and $25,000 for property damage, plus uninsured motorist coverage. During a prearranged ride, liability coverage must be at least $1,000,000 for death, bodily injury and property damage, plus uninsured motorist coverage. 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 Missouri?
Missouri requires commercial motor vehicles (as defined in federal rules) to be equipped and operated as required by the federal motor carrier safety regulations, 49 CFR Parts 390 through 397 (which include hours of service and inspection, repair and maintenance), for both intrastate and interstate transportation, and the Department of Public Safety may adopt further safety rules. Federal minimum insurance for interstate carriers is in 49 CFR 387.9.
Can you sue for a construction accident in Missouri?
Missouri's workers' compensation law sets the general rule for construction injuries. A covered employer must pay compensation regardless of fault and is released from all other liability, and the worker's rights under the law exclude other remedies; co-employees are also released unless they committed an affirmative negligent act that purposefully and dangerously caused or increased the risk of injury. When a third party is liable, the employer is subrogated to the worker's claim against that party and recoveries are shared under the statute.
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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.