Kentucky Crash Reports: State Police, Cities and No-Fault Rules
Who has your crash report, what drivers must report, insurance rules and traffic deaths in Kentucky.
Meanwhile, I-64 crosses the state from Louisville to Catlettsburg, near the West Virginia line. Around Louisville, drivers heading into Southern Indiana also use the Lincoln and Lewis and Clark bridges, where RiverLink tolls apply. With so many routes connecting cities and communities, knowing which agency handles a crash report can make a difference after an accident.
Kentucky State Police (KSP) operates out of 16 posts, while Louisville, Lexington, and other cities have their own police departments. So, if you have just been in a crash, the first thing to figure out is which agency responded to the scene, since that is generally where you will need to request your report.
Who Has Your Kentucky Crash Report
Under Kentucky’s crash report regulation, 502 Kentucky Administrative Regulations (KAR) 15:010, the agency whose officer wrote the report is responsible for releasing it. Every agency also files its reports with the Kentucky State Police within 10 days of the investigation under Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) 189.635, and a few local departments, such as Campbell County Police, send all report requests to KSP. If an officer gave you a report number at the scene, the agency on it is where to start.
Kentucky State Police reports are sold online through BuyCrash. The regulation sets the fee at $10 for a report obtained through the KSP website and $5 for a paper copy.
Written requests go to the Records Custodian, Kentucky State Police, Public Records Branch, 1266 Louisville Road, Frankfort, KY 40601, by mail, by hand, by fax (855-592-7656), by email ([email protected]), or through the online open records portal. Under KRS 61.880, KSP has five days, not counting weekends and legal holidays, to answer a written request.
Crash reports are confidential under KRS 189.635. Apart from a subpoena or court order, they go only to the parties, parents or guardians of a minor party, insurers or their written designee, the parties’ attorneys, litigants who include the first page of a clerk-stamped complaint naming all parties, the Department of Workplace Standards in safety investigations, and law enforcement. News organizations can get reports after filing form KSP 029.
Don’t want to chase the custodian or the vendor, or not sure which agency wrote yours? We’ll get a copy of your report for you at no cost.
Police Reports From Kentucky Cities and Counties
Six of the nine departments below sell crash reports through BuyCrash, the same vendor KSP uses. Start with the department that responded to your crash:
| Department | How to request | Fee |
| Louisville Metro Police | Online portal with the report number (24 to 72 hours), or the Service Counter, 701 W. Ormsby Ave., Suite 001 | $10 |
| Lexington Police | Online, or Central Records, 150 E. Main St., in person or by mail with a stamped, self-addressed envelope | $10 online; $5 in person or by mail |
| Bowling Green Police | BuyCrash, or the Central Records Unit, 911 Kentucky St.; allow 5 to 8 working days | $5 |
| Owensboro Police | BuyCrash, or the Records Section, 222 E. 9th St. | $5 for an involved party in person; $10 for an authorized business |
| Covington Police | BuyCrash, or 1 Police Memorial Dr. (no cards) | $5 in person; $10 online |
| Richmond Police | BuyCrash, or the Records Office, 1721 Lexington Road | $5 in person, cash only |
| Georgetown Police | BuyCrash, or 550 Bourbon St.; ready 5 days after the crash | $1 in person; $10 online |
| Florence Police | BuyCrash, or the Florence Government Center, 8100 Ewing Blvd. | Set at request |
| Campbell County Police | Sends all requests to the Kentucky State Police | Set at request |
Lexington releases crash reports only to the people involved. Louisville releases them to an involved party with ID, an insurer, or an attorney.
What Kentucky Drivers Must Report
Under KRS 189.635, the driver in a crash that injures or kills someone, or leaves a vehicle unable to be driven, must notify a law enforcement officer immediately. If the driver can’t, the owner or an occupant has to do it.
When no officer investigates and property damage tops $500, the driver must file a written report with the Kentucky State Police within 10 days. That is the civilian collision report, filed on the KSP Civilian Collision Reporting portal, which gives you a report number and a copy to download.
If an officer did respond, KSP asks you to allow 10 days for the officer’s report and not to file a second one. KSP keeps civilian reports for up to two years.
KRS 189.580 also requires a driver in a crash that injures someone or damages an attended vehicle or property to stop, help anyone hurt, and, when asked, give names, addresses, and the registration number.
Kentucky No-Fault Insurance and Fault Rules
Kentucky is a no-fault state. Your own personal injury protection, which state law calls basic reparation benefits, pays up to $10,000 per person per accident for economic loss, regardless of who caused the crash (KRS 304.39-020). The Department of Insurance lists medical expenses, lost wages, replacement services, and survivor benefits among what it pays.
In exchange, KRS 304.39-060 limits lawsuits for pain and suffering. A person covered by no-fault can sue another driver for those damages only when medical expenses go over $1,000, or the injury includes permanent disfigurement, a broken bone, loss of a body part, a permanent injury, permanent loss of a bodily function, or death.
You can keep the full right to sue by rejecting that limit before a crash, in writing or electronically on the Department of Insurance’s No-Fault Rejection Form. The form goes to the Kentucky Department of Insurance, P.O. Box 517, Frankfort, KY 40602-0517, takes effect when the department receives it, and stays until you revoke it in writing.
A person who rejects it can also be sued without the limit, cannot collect no-fault benefits, and may pay higher premiums.
Every policy must carry at least $25,000 for injury to one person, $50,000 per accident and $25,000 for property damage, or a single limit of $60,000 under KRS 304.39-110. Uninsured motorist coverage comes with every auto liability policy unless a named insured rejects it in writing, and one named insured’s rejection applies to everyone on the policy under KRS 304.20-020.
Kentucky also uses pure comparative fault. Since the state Supreme Court’s 1984 decision in Hilen v. Hays, a person partly to blame for a crash can still recover, with the award reduced by their share of fault under KRS 411.182.
Claims carry their own clocks under KRS 304.39-230. When no benefits have been paid, a lawsuit for no-fault benefits must be filed within two years after the loss is suffered and known to come from the crash, and no later than four years after the crash. Lawsuits get two years for most motor vehicle injury claims under the same statute; other personal injury claims in Kentucky get one year under KRS 413.140.
Kentucky Traffic Deaths by the Numbers
| Measure | Figure | Year | Source |
| People killed in traffic crashes | 664 | 2025 | Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, as of May 2026 |
| People killed in traffic crashes | 707 | 2024 | Kentucky Transportation Cabinet |
| People killed in traffic crashes | 814 | 2023 | Kentucky Transportation Cabinet |
| Traffic deaths so far this year | 520 through Oct. 13 | 2026 | Kentucky Transportation Cabinet |
The Transportation Cabinet’s Office of Highway Safety publishes a fatality report every day, and the 2025 total comes from its year-end report as of May 29, 2026. Kentucky’s traffic deaths fell in each of the last two full years.
Kentucky Crash Guides by City and County
At Local Accident Reports, we cover crashes across the country. That means going county by county, and then city by city, focusing on car crashes, motorcycle wrecks, commercial and residential fires, and every other kind of accident happening in every corner of the nation.
Kentucky is no exception. With 120 counties and 411 municipalities/cities, there are crashes to report every single day, and that’s what we do. But we don’t stop there. We don’t just want to tell drivers and commuters when and where a crash happened. We also want to help people get to know the cities they drive in, including the most important roads and the most dangerous intersections, so they have a clear picture of what to expect behind the wheel.
Here you’ll find the latest accidents across Kentucky’s counties and communities, along with guides to some of the state’s most important cities.
City crash guides: Bowling Green, KY
County accident news: Fayette County · Jefferson County · Warren County · Christian County · Kenton County · Boone County · Graves County · Hardin County
Compare nearby states: Southeast crash reports and car accident laws by state · No-fault states and insurance minimums in all 50 states
Questions about getting, reading or correcting a police report? See our accident report FAQ.
Intersections and road stretches with high crash counts from 2018 to 2022 are on our Kentucky dangerous intersections page.
Help After a Crash
- Local Accident Reports. We can connect you with local help after a crash, from doctors and body shops to injury attorneys. Contact our team.
- Kentucky Crime Victims Compensation Board Helps pay losses for people hurt or killed by a drunk or drugged driver, a hit-and-run driver, or a driver acting recklessly or wantonly (KRS 49.280). Awards top out at $50,000. 502-782-8255.
- MADD Free support for people hurt by drunk or drugged drivers and for families who lost someone. 24-hour help line: 877-MADD-HELP (877-623-3435).
- 911. Call 911 any time for support after an accident.
Kentucky Crash Questions
How do I get a Kentucky State Police accident report?
Order it online through BuyCrash, the vendor KSP names for collision reports, or send a written request to the KSP Records Custodian, 1266 Louisville Road, Frankfort, KY 40601. State regulation sets the fee at $10 through the KSP website and $5 for a paper copy. Only the people involved, their insurers and attorneys, and a few others listed in KRS 189.635 can get one.
Do I have to file a report if police did not come to my Kentucky crash?
Yes, when property damage is over $500. KRS 189.635 requires the driver to file a written report with the Kentucky State Police within 10 days, and KSP takes it online as a civilian collision report that gives you a report number and a copy to download. If an officer did come, allow 10 days for that report and do not file a second one.
Is Kentucky a no-fault state?
Yes. Your own no-fault coverage pays up to $10,000 per person for medical bills, lost wages, and other economic loss, whoever caused the crash. In exchange, you can sue for pain and suffering only when medical expenses top $1,000 or the injury is serious, such as a broken bone. Filing a rejection with the Department of Insurance before a crash, in writing or electronically, keeps the full right to sue.
How long do I have to file a car accident claim in Kentucky?
Most motor vehicle injury lawsuits must be filed within two years after the injury, the death, or the last no-fault payment, whichever is later under KRS 304.39-230. The same two years apply when a crash kills someone. Claims against the state go to the Board of Claims within one year under KRS 49.120, and a claim over a defective city street needs notice filed with the city within 90 days under KRS 411.110.
Recent Kentucky Crash Coverage
Scooter Rider Killed in Crash with Public Works Truck in Covington, KY
Injury Crash on Scottsville Rd in Bowling Green, KY
Two Hospitalized After Two-Vehicle Crash on Franklin Rd in Russellville, KY
Hazard Man Killed in Head-On Median-Crossing Crash on KY-80 in Bulan, KY
Two Hospitalized After Car Strikes Ambulance Near W Main St and N Mill St in Lexington, KY
Older stories are in the Kentucky accident news archive, and recent accident alerts track new crashes across the country as they are reported.
Local Accident Reports compiles this information from public agency sources and published reports for general reference. It is not legal advice and is not an official police record. Fees, forms and deadlines change, so confirm with the agency before you send a request. Last updated October 2026.