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MINNESOTA GUIDE 19

Minnesota Crash Damages & No-Fault Tort Threshold

Minnesota tort damages operate alongside the no-fault system. Under Minn. Stat. § 65B.51, a claimant may pursue economic loss not paid or payable through no-fault benefits, while recovery of noneconomic damages generally requires satisfaction of the statutory threshold.

  • The statutory medical-expense threshold is more than $4,000 after applying the statute’s specified inclusions and exclusions.
  • Noneconomic damages may also be available when the injury results in permanent disfigurement, permanent injury, death, or disability for 60 days or more.
  • Separate basic economic-loss/PIP benefits from tort damages to avoid duplication.
  • Document medical expense, wage loss, future loss, impairment, disfigurement and other damages with source records.
  • Handle vehicle repair, total loss, loss of use and other property damage separately from PIP.

Primary Minnesota Source

Minn. Stat. § 65B.51 — Tort Recovery and Noneconomic-Damage Threshold

Current-law review: September 16, 2026. Threshold analysis is fact-specific and should be based on the current statute and admissible proof of injury and expense.