Truck Accident Laws in Kentucky (2026): Deadlines & Liability

A crash with a commercial truck in Kentucky is shaped by two layers of law. State law sets the deadline to sue, decides how shared fault affects recovery, and runs Kentucky's unusual choice no-fault insurance system. A separate federal layer, enforced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), sets the safety rules for the driver and the trucking company, and violations of those rules are often the heart of a serious truck case.

This guide covers the Kentucky deadlines and rules first, then the uniform federal trucking framework that applies in every state. It is general legal information, not legal advice about any specific case.

This guide is part of our Truck Accident Laws by State series.

The deadline to file in Kentucky

Kentucky's general personal-injury statute of limitations is one year under KRS 413.140, which is among the shortest in the country. Motor-vehicle crashes, however, fall under the Motor Vehicle Reparations Act. Under KRS 304.39-230(6), an action for tort liability not abolished by KRS 304.39-060 may be commenced not later than two years after the injury, or the death, or the date the last basic or added reparation (PIP) payment was issued, whichever later occurs. Because ongoing PIP payments can extend the clock, the operative deadline in a truck case should be confirmed carefully rather than assumed. The statute adds one limit on that extension: a replacement payment, meaning a payment reissued in the same amount because the original was lost, stolen, or never delivered, does not push the date past the original payment.

When a crash is fatal, two timing rules can apply and they do not always point at the same date. The motor-vehicle rule in KRS 304.39-230(6) counts its two years from the injury, the death, or the last reparation payment, whichever occurs later. Kentucky's general wrongful-death rule is separate: a claim must be filed within one year of the qualification of the personal representative of the estate (KRS 413.180), and if more than a year passes between death and that qualification, the personal representative is deemed to have qualified on the last day of that one-year period, producing an outer limit of roughly two years from death. Because a promptly appointed representative can make the general rule expire first, the safe practice is to calendar both and treat the earliest applicable date as the deadline. These overlapping deadlines make early calendaring especially important in Kentucky.

How shared fault works: pure comparative negligence

Kentucky follows pure comparative fault. The Kentucky Supreme Court replaced the old all-or-nothing contributory-negligence rule in Hilen v. Hays (1984), and the legislature later codified apportionment in KRS 411.182. Under pure comparative fault, your recovery is reduced by your percentage of fault, but you are never barred entirely. A plaintiff who is 10 percent at fault recovers 90 percent of the damages, and even a plaintiff who is 70 percent at fault still recovers 30 percent. This is more favorable to injured parties than the modified rules used in many states, where being 50 or 51 percent at fault ends the claim.

No-fault insurance and the tort threshold

Kentucky is one of only a few choice no-fault states. By default, every driver carries personal injury protection (PIP) of at least $10,000, which pays your own medical bills, lost wages, and certain other costs after a crash regardless of fault, and in exchange tort liability for those first no-fault dollars is limited.

To step outside no-fault and sue the at-fault party for pain and suffering, you must clear a tort threshold in KRS 304.39-060. The threshold is met when medical expenses exceed $1,000, or the injury consists in whole or in part of permanent disfigurement, a fracture to a bone (including a compound, comminuted, displaced, or compressed fracture), loss of a body member, permanent injury within reasonable medical probability, permanent loss of bodily function, or death. Each of those is independently sufficient, and the severe injuries common in heavy-truck collisions almost always clear the threshold.

The "choice" feature is what makes Kentucky distinctive: under KRS 304.39-060, a driver may file a written rejection of no-fault with the Kentucky Department of Insurance before any accident. A driver who rejects no-fault gives up PIP benefits but keeps unrestricted tort rights and is not subject to the threshold. Most Kentucky drivers do not reject, so the threshold usually applies.

Damage caps

Kentucky does not cap compensatory damages in ordinary personal-injury cases. In fact, the Kentucky Constitution (Section 54) bars the legislature from limiting the amount recoverable for injury or death, which is why general damage caps have not taken hold in the state. Punitive damages are governed by their own statutory standards and require a heightened showing.

State auto-insurance context

Kentucky drivers must carry minimum liability coverage of 25/50/25 (in thousands: $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, $25,000 for property damage), plus at least $10,000 in PIP, according to the Kentucky Department of Insurance. Those state minimums are low compared with the federal coverage required of interstate trucks, described below.

Federal trucking rules: the FMCSA layer

Commercial trucks are regulated by the FMCSA under Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations. These rules are uniform nationwide, and a violation is often strong evidence of negligence. The core areas include:

• Hours of service. Under 49 CFR Part 395, a property-carrying driver may drive up to 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty, may not drive beyond the 14th hour after coming on duty, must take a 30-minute break after 8 hours of driving, and is capped at 60 hours in 7 days or 70 hours in 8 days. Fatigue and falsified logs are recurring issues in truck crashes.
• Electronic logging devices (ELDs). Most drivers must record their hours with an ELD that meets Part 395, replacing paper logs and creating a digital record of driving time.
• Driver qualification and CDL. Drivers must hold a valid commercial driver's license and meet medical and qualification standards under the federal rules.
• Drug and alcohol testing. Carriers must run pre-employment, random, post-accident, and reasonable-suspicion testing programs.
• Vehicle maintenance and inspection. Trucks must be systematically inspected, repaired, and maintained, with records kept, under the federal maintenance rules.

Who can be held liable

A truck case routinely involves more potential defendants than an ordinary car crash, and many are companies:

• the driver, for negligent driving;
• the motor carrier (the trucking company), often vicariously responsible for its driver and directly liable for negligent hiring, training, supervision, or retention;
• a broker or shipper in some circumstances;
• a cargo loader, when improperly loaded or unsecured freight contributes to a crash;
• a parts or equipment manufacturer, if a defective component such as brakes or tires played a role.

Identifying every responsible party matters because, under Kentucky's apportionment rules, fault is allocated among all of them.

Federal minimum insurance

Federal law requires far more coverage from interstate trucks than Kentucky requires from cars. Under 49 CFR 387.9, a for-hire motor carrier transporting general (non-hazardous) freight in interstate commerce must maintain at least $750,000 in liability coverage. Carriers hauling certain hazardous materials must carry substantially higher limits. This federal floor is one reason truck claims differ sharply from car claims.

Why preserving evidence early matters

Much of the best evidence in a truck case is electronic and can be lost. ELD and logbook data, the truck's engine control module or "black box" data, dashcam footage, and maintenance and inspection records can be overwritten or routinely discarded on a short cycle. Because of that, a written preservation (spoliation) letter sent to the carrier early can be important to keep that evidence from disappearing. The police crash report, photographs of the scene and vehicles, and your own medical records should also be preserved.

How injury cases are typically handled

Most personal-injury attorneys evaluate truck cases on a contingency-fee basis and offer a free initial consultation, meaning fees are generally a percentage of any recovery rather than an upfront charge. No lawyer can promise a particular outcome or amount, and every case turns on its own facts and evidence. Because Kentucky's deadlines are short and can vary with PIP payments, and trucking evidence can disappear quickly, it is generally wise to evaluate options early.