Colorado car accident law: deadlines, fault and your claim

Filing deadlines in Colorado#

Colorado's statute of limitationsStatute of limitations. The law that sets the last day to file a lawsuit. After it passes, a court will usually dismiss the case, however strong it is. Glossary for a lawsuit over injuries or vehicle damage from a car crash is 3 years. The clock usually starts on the day of the crash. Wrongful death claims have a shorter deadline.

For an injured child, Colorado's rules on legal disability apply: if no court-appointed guardian or conservator is in place, a child can generally sue within the normal period or within two years after turning 18, whichever ends later. This is a form of tollingTolling. Pausing the limitations clock, for example while the injured person is a child. Glossary. If a court has appointed a guardian or conservator, the normal deadline generally runs, so the details matter.

Claims against the government follow the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act: a written notice of claim must be filed within 182 days after the injury is discovered, with the attorney general for the state or with the governing body or attorney of any other public entity. The statute makes this notice of claimNotice of claim. A written notice that must be sent to a city, county or state agency before you can sue it, often within a few months. Glossary a condition of any lawsuit, so a late notice can end the claim. After filing, you generally must wait 90 days before suing, unless the claim is denied sooner.

For crashes, the main exception to sovereign immunitySovereign immunity. The rule that governments cannot be sued unless a law allows it. Tort claims acts allow some claims, with limits. Glossary is written into the act. Immunity is waived for injuries caused by a public employee driving a vehicle the public entity owns or leases, in the course of employment (emergency vehicles operating under the emergency-vehicle rules excepted). Colorado caps what can be recovered from public entities, per person and per occurrence, and the Secretary of State adjusts the amounts every four years. The Denver guide explains how to file a claim against the City and County of Denver.

How fault is shared in Colorado#

Under C.R.S. § 13-21-111(1), your own negligence does not bar recovery as long as it was less than the negligence of the person you are suing. Your damages are then reduced by your percentage of fault. At 50% or more you recover nothing, so an even split means no recovery.

This makes the exact percentage the center of many Colorado claims. Try the fault-rule explainer to see how the 50% bar compares with other states.

Insurance in Colorado#

Colorado drivers must carry liability insurance of at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per crash for injuries, plus $15,000 for property damage. Colorado is an at-fault state: the driver who caused the crash, through their insurer, pays for the losses. Every policy also comes with first-party coverage unless the buyer turns it down:

• Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage: Included unless rejected in writing.
• Medical payments coverage: Included at $5,000 unless rejected in writing. It pays medical bills whoever caused the crash.
• Personal injury protection: Not required.

The Insurance Information Institute estimates that 19.7% of Colorado drivers were uninsured in 2023, against 15.4% nationally. That makes it worth checking whether your policy still includes uninsured motorist coverage. The Colorado Division of Insurance answers consumer questions at 303-894-7499; 800-930-3745 (toll-free outside the Denver area).

After a crash in Colorado#

Colorado law says a driver in a crash that causes injury, death or any property damage must give immediate notice of its location to the nearest police authority. If the police tell you to, you must return to the scene and stay until they finish their investigation.

Police do not always investigate. An officer need not investigate or file a report when no one is hurt and damage to any one person's property is $1,000 or less, unless a driver cannot show proof of insurance or someone asks for an investigation. Drivers can also report a crash themselves: if no officer came to the scene, you can file a counter report online with the DMV, which is kept for record purposes only.

To get a copy of the report, ask the police agency that handled the crash, or request it from the Colorado DMV with form DR 2559 by mail or at the Westgate office in Lakewood. Allow 90 days for a police report to reach the DMV's records. Denver Police handle their own report requests; see the Denver guide. Our guide to police reports explains how insurers use them.

Special rules in Colorado#

Caps on non-economic damages

For civil actions filed on or after January 1, 2025, Colorado caps noneconomic damagesNon-economic damages. Losses without a price tag, such as pain, suffering, emotional distress and loss of enjoyment of life. Glossary such as pain and suffering at $1,500,000, according to the General Assembly's summary of HB24-1472. The same law set a wrongful death damages cap of $2,125,000. Both amounts are to be adjusted for inflation every two years starting in 2028. Our guide to pain and suffering explains how these damages are valued.

Seat belts

Colorado limits how a missing seat belt can be used against an injured person: not wearing a seat belt can be used to reduce damages for pain and suffering, but not for economic loss or medical payments.

Crashes on Colorado roads#

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety counted 689 crash deaths in Colorado in 2024. That is 11.6 per 100,000 people, slightly above the US rate of 11.5 per 100,000 people. Speeding played a part in 34% of the deaths, and 34% happened on rural roads. IIHS also estimates that 34% of the passenger vehicle drivers killed had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or higher.

Finding a lawyer in Colorado#

The Colorado Bar Association does not make referrals; it offers an online Find-a-Lawyer directory, which you can search by location and practice area. Read our guide to lawyer referral services for other ways to find one.

Before you hire anyone, check the lawyer's license and any public discipline in the Colorado Supreme Court's attorney search, or call Colorado Attorney Registration at 303-928-7800. Our guide on how to check a lawyer's license explains what to look for.