The truck accident statute of limitations in Minnesota appears to be 6 years from the date of the crash (Minn. Stat. § 541.05 subd. 1(5)). Wrongful death generally runs 3 years from the date of death. If a government vehicle or entity was involved, formal written notice is generally required first, on its own clock: 180 days. 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 Minnesota 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 Minnesota, 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. Minnesota is already selected. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.
What makes Minnesota different
Minnesota has one of the widest gaps in the country between its ordinary deadline and its government deadline — six years for personal injury, but only 180 days to give notice to a municipality or the State. A claimant who reasonably assumes they have years can lose a claim against a city plow or a transit vehicle in under six months. Wrongful death is three years, half the injury period.
The four Minnesota deadlines that matter
| Deadline | Period | Runs from | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal injury lawsuit | 6 years | the date of the crash | Minn. Stat. § 541.05 subd. 1(5) |
| Wrongful death claim | 3 years | the date of death | Minn. Stat. § 573.02 subd. 1 |
| Notice — state entity | 180 days | the date of the crash | Minn. Stat. § 3.736 subd. 5 |
| Notice — city, county or district | 180 days | the date of the crash | Minn. Stat. § 466.05 |
On the injury period: Minnesota's six-year period is one of the longest in the country for ordinary negligence.
On the wrongful death period: Half the personal injury period, and subject to an outer limit of six years from the act.
Claims against a government entity in Minnesota
The shortest government notice window found for Minnesota — 180 days (Minn. Stat. § 3.736 subd. 5). This is the deadline that quietly ends claims: it comes due long before the ordinary filing deadline, it is a precondition to suing rather than a suggestion, and missing it usually bars the claim entirely no matter how strong the case is.
Notice to the Commissioner of Administration within 180 days. Notice to the municipality within 180 days — a fraction of the six-year ordinary period. This is Minnesota's biggest deadline trap.
Public fleets you could realistically be hit by in Minnesota: MnDOT plow and maintenance trucks, county highway department equipment, Metro Transit buses, City of Minneapolis and St. Paul fleets, and school district 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 Minnesota under Minn. Stat. § 541.15 — the clock generally does not start until the injured person turns 18.
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 Minnesota clock starts
Limited. Minnesota generally starts the clock when some compensable damage occurs.
Why the evidence clock in Minnesota is much shorter
Minnesota's filing deadline is 6 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 Minnesota
Minnesota moves iron ore, grain and forest products alongside Twin Cities distribution freight. Winter conditions on I-94 and I-35 north of the metro produce multi-vehicle truck crashes at a rate few states match.
The corridors where these crashes concentrate: I-94 (Minneapolis–St. Cloud–Fargo), I-35 and its split to Duluth, I-90 across the southern tier, US-169 and US-10 and The Port of Duluth-Superior approaches.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| North Dakota | 6 years | 2 years |
| South Dakota | 3 years | 3 years |
| Iowa | 2 years | 2 years |
| Wisconsin | 3 years | 3 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 Minnesota
- 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 6 years deadline with a far shorter notice window — 180 days.
- Do not give a recorded statement to the trucking company's insurer.
- Request the Minnesota crash report, which identifies the carrier, the DOT number and the insurer.
- Have a lawyer licensed in Minnesota 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.