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There is a time limit on injury claims in Colorado, and the insurance company knows exactly when it runs out. Answer five questions and we will connect you, free, with an independent attorney licensed in Colorado.
Limited
Time to file motor vehicle claims specifically in Colorado. Miss it and the claim is gone
Shorter
Government vehicle and public entity claims run on their own, tighter clock
Varies
Coverage carried by the at-fault driver is often well below the real cost
Modified
Colorado follows modified comparative negligence with a 50% bar
This page describes Colorado law in general terms only. It is not legal advice, deadlines and rules change, and exceptions apply. Confirm anything affecting your own claim with an attorney licensed in Colorado.
Colorado gives motor vehicle injury claims a longer window than the general personal injury deadline. People regularly assume the shorter one applies and give up on claims that were still alive.
The state uses a 50% bar: at exactly half the blame you recover nothing. Combined with mountain and winter driving, where fault is routinely contested between drivers and conditions, that threshold does a great deal of work in Colorado negotiations.
Minimum coverage is 25/50/15. Colorado abolished no-fault in 2003 and is now an at-fault state, though medical payments coverage must be offered on policies and pays regardless of blame — another benefit people often hold without realising.
Winter and altitude are structural. I-70 through the mountain corridor, Vail Pass and the passes on US-285 and US-550 produce collisions where black ice, sudden weather and chain laws all feature in the fault argument. Whether a driver adjusted reasonably to conditions is frequently the entire dispute.
Front Range growth has outpaced the road network. I-25 through Denver, Colorado Springs and Fort Collins carries far more traffic than it was designed for, producing high-volume rear-end and merge collisions in a state where crossing 50% fault ends the claim.
Claims against public entities run on a much shorter notice period under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act. With mountain roads maintained by state and county authorities, road condition claims frequently involve exactly those entities — and that shorter clock.
Each one is common, and each one is avoidable.
Colorado treats motor vehicle claims differently from other injury claims and allows longer. People who read a general personal injury guide, conclude they are out of time and stop, are giving up a claim they still have.
Ice is the standard defence on the I-70 corridor. Colorado still expects drivers to adjust to conditions, and with a 50% bar, allowing an even split to stand unchallenged ends the claim rather than halving it.
Road maintenance, plowing and state vehicle collisions all point at public entities. The Governmental Immunity Act notice period is far shorter than the ordinary statute, and it is jurisdictional.
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A longer window for motor vehicle claims, but a far shorter notice period against a public entity. Both start at the collision.
We match you with an attorney licensed in Colorado who handles your collision type and knows the mountain corridor cases if that is where it happened.
The carrier’s calls go to your attorney, including the conditions questions aimed at pushing you toward a 50-50 split.
Valuation waits for the treatment plan. Altitude and distance mean specialist care is sometimes weeks away from a mountain community, and the record has to reflect that.
Fault is contested with evidence: weather records, CDOT road condition data, chain law status and scene reconstruction.
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We match you with someone licensed in Colorado who works your area.
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Colorado sets a firm deadline running from the date of the accident, and a separate, considerably shorter one where a government vehicle or public entity is involved. Both are strict, and missing either generally ends the claim no matter how strong it was. An attorney can confirm which applies to your situation before anything expires.
Colorado follows modified comparative negligence with a 50% bar. Your recovery is reduced by your share of the blame, and disappears entirely at 50%. The difference between being found 49% and 50% responsible is the whole claim, which makes how fault is assigned unusually consequential here.
Motor vehicle accident claims run under a separate, more generous provision than the general personal injury statute. Claims against public entities require notice far sooner regardless.
Not necessarily. Colorado expects drivers to adjust speed and following distance to conditions, and chain laws apply on parts of the corridor. Conditions are an argument an insurer will make, not a conclusion, and with a 50% bar it is worth contesting properly.
Possibly. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage on your own policy may apply, including in hit-and-run cases where the driver was never identified. Many people do not realise they carry it.
Our service is free to you — attorneys pay us for the connection. Most Colorado accident attorneys work on contingency, so their fee comes from any recovery rather than from you upfront. Confirm the arrangement directly before signing anything.
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ClaimMVA Now is a free matching service, not a law firm.