St. Louis and Missouri injury claims
Hurt in a Missouri car crash? Learn what the at-fault driver owes you, how shared fault works, which deadlines apply, and how a St. Louis car accident lawyer helps — free consultation, no fee unless we recover for you.
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Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome, but they show how Ott Law Firm prepares injury claims around facts, damages, insurance, and trial risk.
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Ott Law Firm reviews serious car accident matters directly, preserves time-sensitive evidence, and explains practical next steps before you give a recorded statement or sign a release.
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A short summary is enough. We can sort out the legal categories after we understand the injury and insurance posture.
Car crash claim check
Missouri car accident claims often turn on early evidence, medical causation, and insurance coverage. A short review can identify what needs to be preserved before adjusters narrow the file.
Police report, 911 record, crash-scene photos, or witness information exists but has not been organized.
The other driver, an insurer, or a company vehicle owner is already disputing fault.
Treatment is ongoing, symptoms changed after the crash, or future care is still uncertain.
A recorded statement, medical authorization, early offer, UM/UIM issue, or total-loss dispute is pending.
If the crash has a specific issue, start there.
A car crash can change your life in a second — the ambulance ride, the adjuster's phone calls, the bills that arrive before you've even healed. This page explains what Missouri law actually gives you after a wreck: who pays, what your claim can include, which deadlines matter, and what to do in the first days to protect yourself.
Interstates 70, 64, and 44 meet in St. Louis, and the metro's corridors — I-270, I-255, Highway 40 — see heavy crash volume every year. If your collision involved a special situation, start with the page built for it: our pedestrian accident, bicycle accident, motorcycle accident, truck accident, hit-and-run, and rideshare accident pages cover those claims in detail. For a standard two-car Missouri crash, read on.
Missouri is a fault state. The driver who caused the crash — through that driver's insurance company — owes everyone they hurt. You file your claim against the at-fault driver, not against your own insurer first. That structure gives you the right to pursue every category of loss the crash caused, including pain and suffering, which no-fault states often restrict.
Every Missouri driver must carry liability insurance of at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per crash under RSMo 303.030. Those minimums are real but often too small for serious injuries. When the at-fault driver's coverage falls short — or the driver has no insurance at all — your own uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage becomes the next source of recovery, a topic covered below.
Because fault decides who pays, fault becomes the fight. Adjusters comb police reports and statements for anything that shifts blame toward you. The evidence that settles the question — the crash report, witness accounts, photos, vehicle data, sometimes reconstruction — is easiest to gather in the first days after the wreck.
Missouri follows pure comparative fault. Under RSMo 537.765, a jury assigns each person a percentage of fault, and your recovery shrinks by your percentage. If your damages total $100,000 and you were 20% at fault, you recover $80,000. Even at 60% fault, you still recover 40%. Missouri adopted this system in Gustafson v. Benda, which ended the old rule that any fault on your part destroyed the claim entirely.
Understand what this means in practice: every fault percentage point has a price. When an adjuster argues that you were speeding, distracted, or slow to brake, they are not making small talk — they are trying to move money off the table. We counter with evidence, not argument: the physical scene, the other driver's violations, witness testimony, and the medical record. Fault is proven, not conceded, and you should never accept an adjuster's version of it without a review of your own.
The first 72 hours shape your claim more than anything that comes later. Follow this sequence:
Missouri divides damages into two broad groups. Economic damages repay what you can count: past and future medical bills, lost wages, reduced earning capacity, and property damage. Noneconomic damages compensate what you cannot count: pain, suffering, emotional distress, disability, and the loss of the life you had before the crash.
One point most websites get wrong: Missouri does not cap noneconomic damages in an ordinary car-crash case. The Missouri Supreme Court struck down the statutory cap for common-law negligence claims in Watts v. Lester E. Cox Medical Centers. Juries — not a statutory formula — decide what pain and suffering are worth, which is why the documentation of your daily limitations matters so much.
Damages are proven, not asserted. The medical record ties your injuries to the crash; bills and wage records quantify the economic loss; a journal, family testimony, and treating physicians show what the injury took from your life. When a crash kills someone, the family brings a wrongful-death claim under RSMo 537.090, which carries its own damages rules and a shorter filing deadline covered next.
Missouri gives you five years from the crash to file a personal-injury lawsuit under RSMo 516.120. That is one of the longer limitations periods in the country, and it breeds a costly mistake: waiting. Evidence disappears within weeks, witnesses move, and insurers treat stale claims as weak claims. Treat five years as the outer wall, not the plan.
Two deadlines arrive much sooner. A wrongful-death lawsuit must be filed within three years under RSMo 537.100. And if a government vehicle or government employee caused the crash — a city truck, a state plow — special notice rules can demand action far earlier than either statute suggests. Uninsured-motorist claims add a third trap: your own policy's notice and cooperation clauses run on the policy's clock, not the statute's, and missing them can forfeit coverage you paid for.
Expect a playbook. The adjuster calls early and sounds helpful. They ask for a recorded statement designed to lock in your words before you know your diagnosis. They offer a quick check that covers the emergency room and little else, hoping you sign a release before the MRI. They request a blanket authorization and then attribute your pain to arthritis or an old sports injury. They point to minor vehicle damage and argue the crash could not have hurt you — a negotiation tactic, not a rule of law.
Your own insurer can play the same game. Missouri requires every auto policy to include uninsured-motorist coverage under RSMo 379.203, so when an uninsured driver hits you, your claim runs against your own carrier. That carrier owes you good faith — and still has every incentive to pay less. Policy language controls these fights, and Missouri courts construe unclear set-off and exclusion clauses against the insurer that wrote them.
None of this makes insurers villains; it makes them businesses. The point is simpler: the person across the table from you negotiates claims for a living. You should have someone on your side who does the same.
Most claims follow a predictable arc, and knowing it removes the mystery. First, you treat — and your medical record becomes the backbone of the claim. Second, we investigate: the crash report, scene evidence, witness statements, and coverage from every available policy. Third, once your treatment stabilizes, we assemble a demand package that documents fault and every category of loss. Fourth, we negotiate. Most Missouri car accident claims settle in this phase, because a well-documented file changes what the insurer risks at trial.
When an insurer refuses to pay fairly, we file suit — often in the St. Louis City Circuit Court (22nd Judicial Circuit) or the St. Louis County Circuit Court (21st Judicial Circuit) — and litigate through discovery, depositions, and trial if necessary. Filing suit does not end settlement talks; it usually concentrates them.
You pay nothing upfront for any of this. We handle car accident cases on a contingency fee: our fee comes out of the recovery, and if there is no recovery, you owe no attorney's fee. You will work directly with your attorney — not a call center — from the first consultation through resolution.
Value turns on your injuries, your medical costs, your lost income, the strength of the fault evidence, and the insurance available. No honest lawyer can quote a number on day one. What we can do early is map the coverage — the at-fault driver's limits, your UM/UIM policy, any umbrella — and tell you what the realistic range of sources looks like.
Rarely without a review. First offers typically arrive before your treatment ends, so they cannot account for future care or lasting impairment. Once you sign the release, the claim is closed permanently. Have an attorney read the offer and your medical file before you decide; the consultation costs you nothing.
You turn to your own uninsured-motorist coverage, which Missouri law requires in every auto policy. Your claim then proceeds against your own insurer, and policy conditions — prompt notice, cooperation, no settlement without consent — matter enormously. Review the policy with counsel before you give statements or sign anything, even with your own company.
You can still recover under Missouri's pure comparative fault rule; your award is simply reduced by your percentage of fault. Expect the insurer to inflate that percentage. Do not argue fault with an adjuster — gather the evidence and let it speak.
A straightforward claim with finished treatment can resolve in months; a serious-injury case or a disputed-fault case can take a year or more, longer if suit is filed. Beware anyone who promises a fast number — speed usually serves the insurer, not you.
If a car crash in Missouri hurt you or someone in your family, call Ott Law Firm at (314) 710-2740 or contact us online for a free consultation. We will review the crash, explain your options plainly, and tell you honestly whether you need a lawyer at all. We represent crash victims across the St. Louis metro, including St. Louis County, St. Charles County, Jefferson County, and the Metro East.
This page is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every case is different, and past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.
Looking for help near you? Start with these St. Louis metro pages:
Missouri injury questions
These answers address the Missouri deadlines, proof issues, and insurance questions that usually determine whether a claim needs immediate legal attention.
Under RSMo 516.120, you generally have five years from the date of a car accident to file a personal injury lawsuit in Missouri. For property damage claims, the same five-year period applies.
Car accident victims in Missouri may recover medical expenses, lost wages, future earning capacity, vehicle repair or replacement costs, and compensation for pain and suffering.
Missouri requires drivers to carry uninsured motorist (UM) coverage. If the at-fault driver has no insurance, your own UM policy may cover your losses. An attorney can help you navigate these claims.
Most Missouri car accident claims are resolved through negotiation and settlement without going to trial. However, if the insurance company refuses a fair offer, filing suit may be necessary to protect your rights.
Missouri follows a pure comparative fault system. Insurance companies, judges, and juries evaluate the evidence — police reports, witness statements, crash reconstruction — to assign a percentage of fault to each party.
Need a case-specific answer?
A short consultation can separate general Missouri law from the facts, insurance coverage, and evidence deadlines in your claim.
Selected verdicts and settlements that show how Ott Law Firm prepares injury claims for negotiation and trial. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.
Settlement
personal injury
A 2025 Missouri car-crash claim resolved for a $1,000,000 settlement. Learn what drives seven-figure settlement value, how Missouri fault and insurance law shape recovery, and what injured drivers should do next.
View resultSettlement
personal injury
Secured an $877,000 settlement in an underinsured motorist car crash case.
View resultSettlement
personal injury
Achieved a $500,000 settlement for a client with no recollection of the crash by using expert testimony to disprove the defendant's version of events.
View resultAfter reviewing similar results
Talk with Ott Law Firm about whether the facts, injuries, insurance, and deadlines in your claim call for the same level of preparation.
Missouri appellate decisions currently tagged to this practice area.
Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern DistrictJan 12, 2026affirmed
Appellants sought damages for a wrongful death resulting from a motor vehicle collision involving a pursued driver, alleging the Missouri State Highway Patrol's pursuit was negligent and proximately caused the collision. The court affirmed summary judgment for MSHP, finding that Appellants failed to produce sufficient facts demonstrating that MSHP's actions were the proximate cause of the collision, which is a necessary element of their case.
Missouri Court of Appeals, Western DistrictMay 20, 2025affirmed
Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern DistrictOct 22, 2024reversed
Missouri LIRC decisions surfaced from structured injury and decision text signals related to this practice area.
Feb 14, 2023affirmedback
The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's award allowing workers' compensation benefits to Theresa Thompson for a low back injury sustained on July 20, 2010 while lifting and shelving copper coils. The claimant was entitled to temporary total disability benefits, permanent partial disability compensation, and medical aid totaling over $223,000, with additional underpayment and back pay amounts owed.
Feb 3, 2023affirmedback
The Labor and Industrial Relations Commission affirmed the administrative law judge's award granting permanent total disability compensation to Donald Brown for his work-related injuries to his back and left elbow. The Commission rejected the Second Injury Fund's argument that an anxiety disability should be considered in the PTD determination, finding that non-qualifying psychiatric disabilities need not be factored into the analysis.
Feb 3, 2023modified
The Commission modified its prior award regarding permanent partial disability benefits calculation following a court mandate to recalculate based on full-time worker standards. The employer is now liable for $16,320.00 in permanent partial disability benefits at a rate of $204.00 per week for 80 weeks, with the Second Injury Fund liable for an additional $9,424.80 in enhanced benefits.
Injury Case Review
Talk with Ott Law Firm about your car accident lawyer in st. louis matter, evidence, deadlines, and insurance coverage.