Filing a Car Accident Lawsuit in Colorado

Getting hurt in a Colorado crash puts a clock on your right to sue, and it starts the day of the wreck. The rules that decide whether you can file, how long you have, and what you can collect are set by state statute, and several of them changed in the last two years. Here is what applies in Colorado specifically.

Colorado runs an at-fault system. It dropped no-fault and personal injury protection (PIP) on July 1, 2003, so you no longer route everything through your own insurer. Instead you pursue the driver who caused the crash and that driver's liability coverage.¹

You usually have three years, not two

Most personal injury claims in Colorado carry a two-year deadline. Car crashes are the exception. Any tort claim arising from the operation or use of a motor vehicle gets three years from the date of the accident under C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n)(I), and that three-year window covers both bodily injury and vehicle damage.²

Miss it and the case is almost always dismissed no matter how clear the other driver's fault was. The deadline is the first thing to protect.

Two wrinkles matter. If the crash killed someone, a wrongful death claim runs two years from the date of death, not three, under C.R.S. 13-80-102, though it stretches to four years when the at-fault driver committed vehicular homicide and left the scene.³ And if the injured person was under 18 at the time of the crash, the clock is generally paused until they reach adulthood.

Fault is split, and 50% ends your claim

Colorado uses modified comparative negligence. A jury assigns each party a share of fault, and your award drops by your percentage. Found 20% responsible on a $100,000 case and you collect $80,000.

The hard line sits at 50%. Under C.R.S. 13-21-111, if your negligence is "as great as" the other party's, meaning you are 50% or more at fault, you recover nothing.⁴ That is why insurers work so hard to push blame across that threshold, and why the evidence you lock down early often decides the case.

What you can recover, and Colorado's caps

Economic damages (medical bills, lost wages, future care, and out-of-pocket costs) are not capped in Colorado. You can claim the full documented amount.

Noneconomic damages (pain, suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life) are capped, and here Colorado is unusual. Most states limit pain-and-suffering awards only in medical malpractice cases. Colorado limits them in ordinary injury cases too. House Bill 24-1472 raised those caps sharply for claims filed on or after January 1, 2025: $1,500,000 for personal injury and $2,125,000 for wrongful death.⁵ The old provision that let a court double the cap on clear and convincing evidence was removed at the same time. Starting January 1, 2028, the figures adjust for inflation every two years, so a newer claim can carry a higher limit.⁶

If a drunk or reckless driver hit you, you may also seek exemplary (punitive) damages. C.R.S. 13-21-102 allows them for willful and wanton conduct, capped at the amount of your actual damages, and a court can raise that to three times actual damages when the defendant keeps up the conduct during the case or makes your injuries worse.⁷ Drunk driving routinely meets the willful-and-wanton standard. Colorado also has a dram shop law: C.R.S. 44-3-801 lets a victim sue a bar, restaurant, or store that knowingly served a visibly intoxicated or underage person who then caused the crash, subject to its own separate, inflation-adjusted cap.⁸

The insurance you are actually claiming against

Every Colorado auto policy has to carry at least 25/50/15 in liability: $25,000 per person and $50,000 per crash for bodily injury, plus $15,000 for property damage, under C.R.S. 10-4-620.⁹ Those are floors, and many drivers carry only the minimum, which becomes a problem the moment serious injuries pass $25,000.

That gap is what uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is for. Insurers must include UM/UIM on every auto policy, though you can reject it in writing under C.R.S. 10-4-609.¹⁰ If you didn't reject it, it may be your best source of recovery after a barely-insured or hit-and-run driver. Insurers also have to offer at least $5,000 in medical payments (MedPay) coverage, which pays your medical bills regardless of fault unless you turned it down in writing (C.R.S. 10-4-635).¹¹

For damage to the car itself, a newer or low-mileage vehicle can lose resale value even after a clean repair. Colorado drivers can pursue that loss separately; see the Colorado diminished value guide.

Evidence that carries weight here

Get the police report. The Colorado State Patrol handles crash reports for wrecks its troopers investigate, and a basic report is only a $5 record when it runs 10 pages or fewer.¹² For how to request yours, see the Colorado crash report page.

Two recent laws can help pin down the other driver's fault. Since January 1, 2025, Colorado's hands-free law (Senate Bill 24-065, codified at C.R.S. 42-4-239) bans holding or manually using a phone while driving, even while stopped at a light.¹³ There is a catch worth knowing: enforcement is secondary, so an officer has to witness the phone use causing careless or imprudent driving before writing a ticket.¹⁴ Even without a citation, a crash caused by a distracted driver still supports your civil claim.

Winter shifts the analysis too. When the Colorado Department of Transportation activates the Traction Law, drivers need snow tires, chains, or all-wheel drive, and a driver who slid without proper equipment can end up carrying more of the fault in a storm crash.¹⁵

Motorcycles and a couple of Colorado quirks

If you ride, Colorado's helmet rule is partial: only riders and passengers under 18 must wear a DOT-compliant helmet, though every rider needs eye protection (C.R.S. 42-4-1502).¹⁶ Lane splitting, passing moving traffic between lanes, is illegal. Lane filtering is not: since August 7, 2024, a motorcyclist may pass stopped traffic on the left at 15 mph or less under set conditions. That allowance came from Senate Bill 24-079 and is temporary, set to sunset in September 2027.¹⁷ Whether a rider was filtering legally or splitting illegally can move the fault analysis one way or the other.

When to bring in a lawyer

You are not required to hire one. But Colorado's 50% bar, the damage caps, and UM/UIM stacking questions turn technical fast, and adjusters know the statutes cold. If your injuries are more than minor or fault is contested, talk to an attorney early, while evidence is fresh and well ahead of the three-year deadline. You can find one through the thatcarhitme.com legal directory.

This is general information about Colorado law, not legal advice. For guidance on your specific situation, talk to a licensed Colorado attorney.

Sources

1. Colorado Division of Insurance (DORA), Auto Insurance. https://doi.colorado.gov/types-of-insurance/auto-insurance

2. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 13, C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n)(I). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-13.pdf

3. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 13, C.R.S. 13-80-102 (wrongful death limitation). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-13.pdf

4. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 13, C.R.S. 13-21-111 (comparative negligence). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-13.pdf

5. Colorado General Assembly, HB24-1472, Raise Damage Limit Tort Actions. https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/hb24-1472

6. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 13, C.R.S. 13-21-102.5 (limitations on noneconomic damages). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-13.pdf

7. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 13, C.R.S. 13-21-102 (exemplary damages). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-13.pdf

8. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 44, C.R.S. 44-3-801 (civil liability for serving alcohol). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-44.pdf

9. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 10, C.R.S. 10-4-620 (required minimum coverage). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-10.pdf

10. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 10, C.R.S. 10-4-609 (uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-10.pdf

11. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 10, C.R.S. 10-4-635 (medical payments coverage). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-10.pdf

12. Colorado State Patrol, Online Accident Report Request. https://csp.colorado.gov/colorado-state-patrol-on-line-accident-report-request

13. Colorado General Assembly, SB24-065, Mobile Electronic Devices and Motor Vehicle Driving. https://leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb24-065

14. Colorado State Patrol, Use a Hands-Free Accessory. https://csp.colorado.gov/press-release/use-a-hands-free-accessory

15. Colorado Department of Transportation, Passenger Vehicle Traction and Chain Laws. https://www.codot.gov/travel/winter-driving/tractionlaw

16. Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 42, C.R.S. 42-4-1502 (motorcycle safety equipment). https://content.leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-42.pdf

17. Colorado Department of Transportation, Motorcycle Lane Filtering (SB24-079). https://www.codot.gov/safety/motorcycle/lanefiltering