Kentucky Insurance Company Guides: Car Accident Claims With the Insurers You’ll Meet

Don’t see your insurer? The Kentucky rules below apply to every auto insurer licensed in Kentucky.

For details on each, see our Kentucky auto insurance coverage guide.

Kentucky is a “choice” no-fault state. Unless you formally rejected the no-fault limits in writing before the crash, you are covered by PIP and your right to sue the at-fault driver for pain and suffering is limited. You can bring that claim only if your medical expenses exceed $1,000 or you suffered certain injuries, such as a broken bone, permanent injury, permanent disfigurement or loss of a body function (KRS 304.39-060(2)(b)).

People who filed a written rejection keep their full right to sue, but generally can’t collect PIP benefits (KRS 304.39-060(4), (7) and (8)). Motorcyclists have different rules. Read more in how Kentucky PIP insurance works and directing your PIP benefits.

Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage must be included in Kentucky auto policies unless the named insured rejects it in writing (KRS 304.20-020). It can cover your injuries when the at-fault driver has no insurance or flees the scene.

Underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage must be offered on request (KRS 304.39-320). It pays when the at-fault driver’s liability limits aren’t enough to cover your damages.

Kentucky has a specific procedure before you settle with the at-fault driver’s insurer when you may have a UIM claim. You must send written notice of the proposed settlement by certified or registered mail to every UIM insurer, and the UIM insurer then has 30 days to consent or to pay you the amount of the offer to preserve its rights (KRS 304.39-320(3) and (4)). Skipping this step can put your UIM claim at risk. See uninsured vs. underinsured motorist coverage, our uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist pages.

Adjusters often ask for a recorded statement early, sometimes within a day or two of the crash. What you should do depends on whose insurer is asking:

• If it’s the other driver’s insurer, you are a third-party claimant. No Kentucky law requires you to give the other driver’s insurer a recorded statement. You can decline politely and provide information in writing or through a lawyer.
• If it’s your own insurer, your policy probably has a cooperation clause that requires you to help with the investigation, which can include a statement or an examination under oath for some claims. Read the “duties after an accident or loss” section of your policy. You can still talk with a lawyer first and ask to schedule the statement.

Be careful with broad medical authorization forms. A blanket release can let an insurer collect years of unrelated medical history. You can usually limit an authorization to the injuries and treatment dates related to the crash.

More tips: common insurance adjuster tactics and the first 24 hours after a car accident.

Every auto insurer doing business in Kentucky is subject to the same state laws, whatever its size or where it is based:

• PIP pays first, regardless of fault. Basic reparation benefits (PIP) pay up to $10,000 per person for medical bills, lost wages and certain other losses (KRS 304.39-050(3)). Benefits are overdue if not paid within 30 days after the insurer receives reasonable proof of the loss, and overdue benefits earn 12% interest, or 18% if the delay was without reasonable foundation (KRS 304.39-210).
• A PIP denial must be in writing. An insurer that rejects a PIP claim must give prompt written notice with the reason (KRS 304.39-210(5)).
• Your own policy claims must be paid within 30 days after you provide notice and proof of claim in the form the policy requires. If the insurer doesn’t make a good-faith attempt to settle in that time, the settlement earns 12% interest, and attorney’s fees may be awarded if the delay was without reasonable foundation (KRS 304.12-235).
• Unfair claims practices are prohibited. Kentucky’s Unfair Claims Settlement Practices Act lists 17 practices insurers may not engage in, including misrepresenting policy terms, refusing to pay without a reasonable investigation, failing to affirm or deny coverage within a reasonable time, and not attempting in good faith to settle once liability is reasonably clear (KRS 304.12-230).
• Minimum liability limits are low. Kentucky requires only $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, plus $25,000 for property damage (or a $60,000 single limit) (KRS 304.39-110). Serious injuries often exceed those limits, which is why your own underinsured motorist coverage matters.

For a full explanation of these coverages, see our Kentucky auto insurance coverage guide.