Denver Uninsured Driver Accident Attorneys
Colorado Lawyer for Underinsured Motorist Accident Lawyers
Colorado has returned to a tort - or "at-fault" - system for motor vehicle accidents. Under this system, the driver who is at fault for causing a traffic crash is responsible for paying the victim's medical expenses and compensating for additional damages, such as loss of wages and pain and suffering.
We at the office of Chalat Hatten & Koupal PC provide comprehensive representation to individuals involved in an accident with an underinsured or uninsured truck driver. Our attorneys are well versed in the many types of insurance coverage available to motorists, and we are able to fully explain how they may apply in your auto accident or truck injury situation. For more information, contact an attorney at our office today.
Colorado requires all drivers to carry bodily injury liability coverage of at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident. This insurance provides coverage when an insured causes an accident in which someone is hurt or killed. Colorado also requires $15,000 in property liability coverage, for instances when the at-fault driver causes damage to someone else's property. Usually, this is someone else's car, but it could apply to buildings, utility poles, garage doors, etc.
Collision coverage, which is optional, covers damage to your car from a collision with another car, but also applies in one-vehicle accidents where your car strikes another object. Comprehensive coverage - also optional -provides protection when your car is stolen or damaged in ways that don't involve an impact. Covered risks include hail, fire, theft, flood, earthquake, explosion and falling objects.
Medical payments coverage, or MPC, pays for reasonable expenses you and your passengers incur because of injury in a motor vehicle accident, regardless of fault. As of July 1, 2003 this optional coverage is available in place of Colorado's formerly mandated PIP coverage. Coverage amounts available vary from company to company. You may wish to purchase it if you or your passengers do not have health insurance, or to supplement your health insurance.
Uninsured motorist (UM) coverage protects you by allowing you to make a claim against your own insurance carrier if you are injured as a result of the negligence of a driver who had no bodily injury liability insurance. This coverage also provides protection if you are the victim of a hit-and-run accident. A close cousin to uninsured motorist coverage is underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage. Your insurance carrier is required to offer you the opportunity to purchase underinsured motorist coverage up to the limits of the amount of the liability coverage that you have purchased.
Forms of Uninsured Motorist Coverage
Uninsured motorist coverage is available in two forms: property damage coverage (UM PD) and medical coverage, which is designed to pay your bills when you are hit by a driver without insurance. If you were seriously injured in an auto accident, incurred high medical expenses, and the person who caused the accident had liability limits lower than your underinsured motorist limits, you are entitled to make a claim against your UIM carrier for the difference between the two figures.
Colorado Laws
Colorado's legislature passed a law (effective January 1, 2008) that requires an expansion of uninsured/ underinsured motorist coverage (UM/UIM). Under this new law, insurers are required to offer you this coverage at the same limits as your liability coverage. UM/UIM can be waived only if rejected in writing. You can also select other limits. Most people choose to carry UM/UIM to cover their economic damages, such as medical bills, as well as some non-economic damages should the person who hit you be uninsured or underinsured.
To learn more about uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage and how it applies in a truck accident situation, contact a lawyer at Chalat Hatten & Koupal PC to arrange a free consultation, including on evenings and weekends. We strive to be accessible to clients and guide them through the process. Our firm handles injury cases on a contingency fee basis - no attorneys' fees are charged unless we recover compensation.
