South Dakota car accident law: deadlines, fault and insurance

What the cited provisions say

Under § 15-2-14(3), a personal injury action must commence within three years after accrual, subject to the section's exception where a statute prescribes a different limitation for a special case. Section 21-5-3 requires every wrongful death action to commence within three years after death. Under § 3-21-2, an action against a public entity or its employees seeking damages for personal injury, property damage, error, omission, or death caused by the entity or its employees may not be maintained unless written notice of the injury's time, place, and cause is given to the public entity, as provided by that chapter, within one hundred eighty days after injury; the chapter does not toll or extend any applicable action-commencement limitation.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

In actions to recover damages for injuries to a person or that person's property caused by another's negligence, § 20-9-2 provides that the plaintiff's contributory negligence does not bar recovery when it was slight compared with the defendant's negligence, but damages must be reduced in proportion to the plaintiff's contributory negligence. Section 20-9-2 also requires the slight-in-comparison determination to be made without disclosing a percentage determination of the plaintiff's fault by special interrogatory. The saved text of § 20-9-2 does not supply a numerical threshold for that comparison.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

Who and what the provisions cover

Section 32-35-70 applies to an owner's liability policy referred to in § 32-35-68 and requires coverage for the named insured and other persons using an insured vehicle with the named insured's express or implied permission, subject to the exclusions or limitations permitted by § 32-35-70. Section 32-35-70 addresses legally imposed liability for damages arising from ownership, maintenance, or use within the United States of America or the Dominion of Canada.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

Section 32-35-70 states limits, exclusive of interests and costs, for each insured vehicle: twenty - five thousand dollars for bodily injury to or death of one person in any one accident; fifty thousand dollars for bodily injury to or death of two or more persons in any one accident, subject to the individual limit; and twenty - five thousand dollars for injury to or destruction of others' property in any one accident. Section 32-35-70 permits specified exclusions or limitations, including for a relative residing in the named insured's household.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

Conditions and exceptions

Section 15-2-22 excludes disability time when a person entitled to bring an eligible action was a minor under chapter 26-1 or mentally ill when the cause accrued. Section 15-2-22 excludes real property recovery, penalty or forfeiture actions, and escape actions against a sheriff or other officer, and does not apply to real estate mortgage foreclosure. Section 15-2-22 limits extension to five years for disabilities other than infancy and, in any case, to one year after disability ceases.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

Section 32-35-70 permits exclusion of liability coverage upon the policyholder's written certification that the vehicle will not operate during the policy period, and permits exclusions or limitations pursuant to § 58-11-9.3. Section 32-35-70 treats policies issued after January 1, 1987, and owners purchasing them as compliant with the chapter, without affecting pending litigation. Section 3-21-2 expressly states that its chapter neither tolls nor extends an applicable action-commencement limitation.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

Related provisions in the saved sources

Section 58-11-9 addresses policies insuring against legally imposed liability for bodily injury or death arising from ownership, maintenance, or use of a motor vehicle, delivered or issued for delivery in South Dakota for vehicles registered or principally garaged there, except snowmobiles. For policies within its scope, § 58-11-9 requires protection for insured persons legally entitled to recover damages from owners or operators of uninsured or hit-and-run motor vehicles for resulting bodily injury, sickness, disease, or death, with limits equal to the policy's bodily injury and death coverage, subject to the section's ceiling; policies insuring government owned vehicles need not provide uninsured motorist coverage.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

Under § 58-11-9, required coverage may not exceed one hundred thousand dollars for bodily injury to or death of one person in any one accident and three hundred thousand dollars for two or more persons in any one accident, subject to the individual limit, unless the insured requests additional coverage. Section 58-11-9 permits government owned vehicle policies without required uninsured motorist coverage. Separately, § 32-35-70 treats the driver and owner as compliant with its chapter if the policy meets Title 58 filing and form requirements and has Division of Insurance approval.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

Source date and limits

The source date for this statute-only entry is 2026-11-06. That date identifies the saved legislative text used here; it does not represent verification of today's law. Judicial interpretation and application to individual collision facts are outside this entry. The supplied excerpts are the sole authority for the legal descriptions, and their cross-references do not provide the missing text of other provisions.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

Section 15-2-22 refers to chapter 26-1 for minority, but that chapter's definition was not supplied. Section 32-35-70 refers to § 32-35-68, Title 58, and § 58-11-9.3 without supplying those provisions' full requirements. Section 3-21-2 refers to notice as provided by its chapter, whose other notice provisions are not included. Those references are identified without reconstructing their contents. This is general reference information about selected South Dakota statutes, not legal advice or a determination of any person's filing date, entitlement to recovery, or insurance protection.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]}

See also

• South Dakota car accident statistics (2020-2024)
• Hiring a lawyer and understanding contingency fees

On related publications

• South Dakota truck accident statistics (2020-2024) (truckaccidentlawyers.wiki)