David Adams
Statute of Limitations in Kansas for Auto Accidents and Personal Injury Claims
Kansas generally has a two (2) year statute of limitations for accidents and personal injuries sustained in Kansas. This means that a lawsuit needs to be on file before the two year anniversary of the event or the claim will be forever lost.
Only a few exceptions will apply. They include the following:
- If the injured party was a minor or an adult with an incapacity. In some of these situations the two year period can be extended a number of years.
- If the fact of someone’s negligence could not have been discovered right away, the two years will not run until two years from the date that a person should have reasonably been able to know that their injury was caused by another’s negligence (example – if a doctor leaves an instrument inside someone’s body after a surgery and it is not discovered until a number of months later, the statute would start running from the date of discovery.)
- If, in an auto case, you were injured by an uninsured motorist, then your claim for uninsured motorist benefits under your own policy would have a five (5) year statute of limitation.
Anytime that a two year anniversary is approaching in an accident or negligence situation, extreme caution is warranted.