North Dakota Diminished Value Claim
North Dakota is one of the few states where a standard third-party diminished value claim is not available. Unsettled but very unlikely. There are no North Dakota decisions allowing DV under an insured's own physical-damage coverage, and standard policies limit the carrier to repair cost or actual cash value. Given the Sullivan holding on the tort side, a first-party DV theory faces long odds. Treat as effectively unavailable. You generally have 6 years from the date of the accident (N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(4)), and small claims court handles disputes up to $15,000.
Deadline
6 years
N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(4)
Small claims
$15,000
Jurisdictional limit
Shared fault
Modified comparative negligence (50% bar)
Can you claim diminished value in North Dakota?
North Dakota is the exception. Unsettled but very unlikely. There are no North Dakota decisions allowing DV under an insured's own physical-damage coverage, and standard policies limit the carrier to repair cost or actual cash value. Given the Sullivan holding on the tort side, a first-party DV theory faces long odds. Treat as effectively unavailable.
What remains open to you
North Dakota is an outlier: it effectively does NOT allow an inherent diminished value claim. N.D.C.C. § 32-03-09.1 presumes damages are reasonable repair cost plus loss of use, switching to a before/after market value measure only when restoration is impossible or impracticable. In Sullivan v. Pulkrabek the ND Supreme Court held a plaintiff who took the cost of repair had already received the full statutory measure and could not also recover diminution in value. DV is reachable only by arguing the vehicle could not be properly restored. ND's no-fault act (ch. 26.1-41) limits only bodily-injury tort claims, the DV bar comes from § 32-03-09.1.
Your filing deadline in North Dakota
North Dakota gives you 6 years from the date of the accident to bring a claim for damage to personal property, under N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(4). Note that this is the property damage limit, which in many states is different from the deadline for an injury claim. Do not assume the two are the same.
Six years under N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(4), 'an action for taking, detaining, or injuring any goods or chattels.' North Dakota's general personal-injury SOL is also six years (§ 28-01-16(5)). The long window does not help much given the substantive bar on DV recovery.
In practice you should move much faster than the deadline allows. The limitation period applies to filing a lawsuit, not to sending a demand letter, and negotiating with an adjuster routinely takes four to eight weeks. A claim presented promptly after repairs are finished is also simply more credible than one that surfaces eighteen months later.
Can you claim from your own insurer in North Dakota?
Whether you can recover diminished value from your own collision carrier is unsettled in North Dakota. Unsettled but very unlikely. There are no North Dakota decisions allowing DV under an insured's own physical-damage coverage, and standard policies limit the carrier to repair cost or actual cash value. Given the Sullivan holding on the tort side, a first-party DV theory faces long odds. Treat as effectively unavailable. If you were at fault, it is worth reading your own policy for an appraisal clause before assuming there is no route.
If you were partly at fault
North Dakota applies modified comparative negligence (50% bar). Your recovery is reduced by your share of fault, and you recover nothing once you are found 50% or more at fault.
Step by step
How to file a diminished value claim in North Dakota
Confirm the accident is visible
Run a Carfax or AutoCheck report. Diminished value depends on buyers being able to see the accident, until it appears, an adjuster can fairly argue no market discount exists yet. Records typically show up 30 to 90 days after the repair.Establish the pre-accident value
Pull a private-party or retail value for your exact year, trim and mileage from Kelley Blue Book, J.D. Power or Edmunds, and save the print-out. An adjuster will accept a published guide; they will not accept your own number.Calculate the loss and document the method
Use a documented market-based method and keep the working. Our free calculator produces the figure and the breakdown together.Gather comparable listings
Find at least two clean-history and two accident-branded listings of the same year, make and model. The spread between them is the single most persuasive piece of evidence you can put in front of an adjuster.Send a written demand by certified mail
Address it to the at-fault driver's insurer with the claim number, state the basis for recovery in North Dakota, give a single figure and a response deadline, and enclose your valuation. Send it certified with return receipt and keep the receipt.Follow up, then escalate
Call after about three weeks. If the offer is unreasonable or the claim is ignored, file a complaint with the North Dakota Insurance Department and consider small claims court, North Dakota handles disputes up to $15,000.
Complain to the regulator
The North Dakota Insurance Department requires insurers to respond to consumer complaints in writing within a set period. It is free, it takes about twenty minutes, and it moves stalled claims more often than people expect.
File a complaintNorth Dakota small claims court
Up to $15,000. $15,000 under N.D.C.C. § 27-08.1-01 (counterclaims capped at the same figure). Taken from statutory text quoted in ND Courts small claims materials; confirm the current figure on the ND Courts small claims page before filing. You sue the at-fault driver, not their insurer, the insurer defends and pays on their behalf. Most of these settle before the hearing.
FAQ
Diminished value in North Dakota
Can I file a diminished value claim in North Dakota?
North Dakota is one of the few states where a standard third-party diminished value claim is not available. Unsettled but very unlikely. There are no North Dakota decisions allowing DV under an insured's own physical-damage coverage, and standard policies limit the carrier to repair cost or actual cash value. Given the Sullivan holding on the tort side, a first-party DV theory faces long odds. Treat as effectively unavailable. You generally have 6 years from the date of the accident (N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(4)), and small claims court handles disputes up to $15,000.
How long do I have to file a diminished value claim in North Dakota?
North Dakota allows 6 years to bring a claim for damage to personal property, under N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(4). The clock starts on the date of the accident, not the date repairs finished. Six years under N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(4), 'an action for taking, detaining, or injuring any goods or chattels.' North Dakota's general personal-injury SOL is also six years (§ 28-01-16(5)). The long window does not help much given the substantive bar on DV recovery.
How much is a diminished value claim worth in North Dakota?
There is no North Dakota-specific formula, the value depends on your vehicle, not your state. Most claims fall between $1,000 and $5,000, driven mainly by the repair cost as a share of the car's pre-accident value, whether structural repair was needed, and how new and low-mileage the vehicle is. What North Dakota law determines is whether you can claim and by when, not the size of the loss.
What if the insurer refuses my diminished value claim in North Dakota?
Two routes stay open and both are inexpensive. You can file a complaint with the North Dakota Insurance Department, which requires the insurer to respond in writing within a set period and frequently restarts a stalled claim. You can also sue the at-fault driver in North Dakota small claims court, which handles disputes up to $15,000. $15,000 under N.D.C.C. § 27-08.1-01 (counterclaims capped at the same figure). Taken from statutory text quoted in ND Courts small claims materials; confirm the current figure on the ND Courts small claims page before filing.
Does filing a diminished value claim in North Dakota raise my insurance rates?
No. A third-party diminished value claim is made against the at-fault driver's insurer, not your own, so it never touches your policy or your premium.
Sources and currency
This page was compiled from primary sources: the North Dakota code, state courts and the North Dakota Insurance Department. Last reviewed 2026-07-28. Some details on this page could not be verified to our highest standard; treat them as a starting point and confirm before relying on them. Statutes, small-claims limits and case law change. Recoupe is not a law firm and this is not legal advice. Verify anything you intend to rely on, and speak to an attorney licensed in North Dakota if the amount at stake justifies it.
Show the 6 sources used
- codes.findlaw.com/nd/title-28-judicial-procedure-civil/nd-cent-code-sect-28-01-16
- caselaw.findlaw.com/nd-supreme-court/1054054.html
- mwl-law.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/DIMINUTION-OF-VALUE-IN-ALL-50-STATES-00219945x9EBBF.pdf
- ndlegis.gov/cencode/t26-1c41.pdf
- insurance.nd.gov/consumers/complaints
- ndlegis.gov/cencode/t32c03-2.pdf
Claiming against a specific insurer in North Dakota?
How each national carrier handles diminished value, combined with the North Dakota rules on this page.
By state
Diminished value in nearby states
The rules change at the state line. If your accident happened elsewhere, start there.
What is your North Dakota claim worth?
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