A different kind of fight, but still a real one
Under KRS § 411.182, there's no single percentage that, once crossed, wipes out a Kentucky claim entirely. But that doesn't mean fault stops mattering — it just changes the shape of the argument. In a modified comparative state, an adjuster is hunting for a specific threshold to push a claimant past. In Kentucky, every single percentage point still matters on its own, because it directly and proportionally reduces the final payout, with no cliff edge to aim for and no safe number below which the fight stops.
Where this argument actually comes from
The building blocks of a fault argument in Kentucky are familiar: the narrative section of the police report, any recorded statement taken from the claimant, witness accounts, photos or video of the scene and vehicle positions, and any inconsistencies in how the incident has been described over time. The same evidence insurers use everywhere else still gets used here — it's just aimed at shaving points off a proportional reduction rather than pushing past a bar.
Why a recorded statement still deserves caution
An early, informal recorded statement is still worth genuine caution in Kentucky, even without a fault bar in play. A phrase that shifts an adjuster's internal fault assessment from 20% to 35% doesn't eliminate the claim — but it does mean a meaningfully smaller check, proportional to that shift, on exactly the same underlying damages.
How negotiations actually feel different here
Because there's no threshold to clear, negotiations in Kentucky tend to focus purely on the honest, specific percentage and its direct proportional effect, rather than on an all-or-nothing fight over a particular cutoff number. This can make the negotiation feel less existential than it does in a modified comparative state — the claim itself was never at risk of disappearing entirely — even though the financial stakes of each percentage point remain genuinely real.
Who ultimately decides
If a case goes to trial, the trier of fact — typically a jury — apportions fault among all parties and nonparties involved. In the far more common scenario of a negotiated settlement, this comparison is effectively worked out between the parties, with each side arguing for the percentage that favors its position. See our Kentucky pure comparative fault calculator to see exactly how a shifting fault percentage changes your bottom line.