The truck accident statute of limitations in Kansas appears to be 2 years from the date of the crash (K.S.A. § 60-513(a)(4)). Wrongful death generally runs 2 years from the date of death. A claim against a public entity follows a separate procedure with its own timing. The evidence clock is shorter than all of them.
Before you rely on these numbers
The statutory figures on this page have not yet been verified against current statute text by a licensed attorney. They are published with their citations so they can be checked, and they should be treated as a starting point for a conversation with a Kansas lawyer — not as a legal conclusion. Statutes change: Florida cut its personal injury period in half in 2023 and Louisiana doubled its own in 2024.
Your deadlines in Kansas, calculated
Enter the date of your crash and the tool below will work out both clocks — the legal filing deadline and the much shorter window before the proof can be destroyed. Kansas is already selected. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.
What makes Kansas different
Kansas has one of the least generous tolling rules in the country for injured children: a minor gets only one year after turning 18, not a fresh two-year period, and total tolling is capped at eight years from the crash. Claims against a municipality also require written notice to the clerk before suit, with a 120-day review window — skipping that step is fatal even though there is no simple countdown date attached to it.
The four Kansas deadlines that matter
| Deadline | Period | Runs from | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal injury lawsuit | 2 years | the date of the crash | K.S.A. § 60-513(a)(4) |
| Wrongful death claim | 2 years | the date of death | K.S.A. § 60-1903 |
| Notice — state entity | Kansas Tort Claims Act | the date of the crash | K.S.A. § 75-6101 et seq. |
| Notice — city, county or district | Written notice required before suit | the date of the crash | K.S.A. § 12-105b(d) |
On the injury period: Subject to a 10-year outer repose limit from the act.
Claims against a government entity in Kansas
Kansas does not set a single fixed notice countdown. Instead it uses a separate claims procedure — Kansas Tort Claims Act (K.S.A. § 75-6101 et seq.). The requirement is procedural rather than a date on a calendar, which is exactly why it gets overlooked, and skipping it still ends the claim.
The State is covered by the KTCA without the very short notice window municipalities impose. Written notice must be filed with the municipal clerk before suit, and the municipality then has 120 days to review. The limitations period is extended during that review, but skipping the notice is fatal.
Public fleets you could realistically be hit by in Kansas: KDOT maintenance trucks, Kansas Turnpike Authority vehicles, county road and bridge equipment, municipal fleets in Wichita and Kansas City, and USD school buses. If you are not certain whether the vehicle that hit you was one of these, work to the shorter deadline until somebody confirms otherwise. The downside is not symmetrical.
If the injured person was a minor
Tolled, capped at 1 year past majority in Kansas under K.S.A. § 60-515 — the clock generally does not start until the injured person turns 18. Kansas gives a minor only one year after turning 18, and caps total tolling at eight years from the act.
That pause applies to the court deadline. It does not apply to the evidence. A carrier is entitled to destroy a driver's logs six months after the crash whether the injured person is 8 or 38, and in many states a government notice deadline is not tolled for a child either. A tolled filing deadline and an untouched evidence deadline is the most dangerous combination on this page.
When the Kansas clock starts
Applies. The clock runs when the fact of injury becomes reasonably ascertainable.
Why the evidence clock in Kansas is much shorter
Kansas's filing deadline is 2 years. The federal retention rules that govern the trucking company are measured in weeks and months:
- Dashcam and telematics video — often 30 days or less. No federal retention requirement — vendor and carrier policy only.
- ECM / black box data — overwritten as the tractor keeps running, and routinely lost when it is repaired or resold.
- Driver logs and records of duty status — six months (49 CFR § 395.8(k)(1)).
- Maintenance and repair records — one year while the vehicle is in the carrier's control (49 CFR § 396.3(c)).
- Annual inspection report — 14 months (49 CFR § 396.21(b)(1)).
The way to stop those clocks is a preservation letter to the carrier — a written demand that specific evidence be kept. Until it arrives, destroying records at the end of a retention period is routine and lawful. Our FMCSA regulations and evidence guide explains what each of these records contains.
Truck traffic in Kansas
Kansas carries transcontinental I-70 freight alongside a very heavy agricultural and beef-processing haul out of the southwest counties. Wichita's aviation manufacturing adds oversize load traffic on US-54 and the Turnpike.
The corridors where these crashes concentrate: I-70 (Kansas City–Topeka–Salina–Colorado), I-35 Kansas Turnpike (Wichita–Emporia), I-135 and US-81, US-50 and US-54 across the southwest and I-435 around Kansas City.
Neighbouring states have different clocks
A crash a few miles across a state line can be governed by a completely different deadline. If you are not certain which state your crash happened in — near a border, on a bridge, or on an interstate you were travelling at speed — check both.
| State | Injury deadline | Wrongful death |
|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | 4 years | 2 years |
| Missouri | 5 years | 3 years |
| Oklahoma | 2 years | 2 years |
| Colorado | 3 years (motor vehicle) | 2 years |
Or use the filing deadline calculator to compare any state, and the full state index for all 50 states and D.C.
What to do next in Kansas
- Get a preservation letter to the carrier. This is the most time-critical step and the one almost nobody hears about.
- Confirm whether a government entity was involved. That answer can replace your 2 years deadline with a far shorter notice window — a separate claims procedure entirely.
- Do not give a recorded statement to the trucking company's insurer.
- Request the Kansas crash report, which identifies the carrier, the DOT number and the insurer.
- Have a lawyer licensed in Kansas confirm the dates above against the current statute.
Sources
- Hours of Service — records of duty status retention — 49 CFR § 395.8 (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration)
- Inspection, Repair, and Maintenance — record retention — 49 CFR Part 396 (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration)
- Accident register requirements — 49 CFR § 390.15 (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration)
- Large Truck and Bus Crash Facts — Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
Federal regulations and crash statistics are updated periodically. Figures cited on this page reflect the referenced publications at the time of writing; check the source for the current edition.