Additional Information

Understanding Colorado Motorcycle Insurance Coverage Options

As a motorcyclist in Colorado, to protect your rights and meet your individual insurance needs, you need to understand the insurance coverage requirements and available coverage options for riders. At Safe Ride Law, we understand that the process of obtaining or updating your motorcycle insurance can be confusing. To help get you started, what follows is some basic information on Colorado coverage requirements for motorcyclists and some of the optional types of insurance that are also available.

Colorado Minimum Coverage Requirements

The State of Colorado requires that riders carry bodily injury coverage of at least $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident , and property damage coverage of at least $15,000 per accident. However, because injuries in motorcycle accidents are often both extensive and severe, these minimum coverage amounts intended to provide only the most basic level of financial protection may not be sufficient. Motorcyclists always have the option to purchase coverage above the legal limits and depending on your circumstances, electing to carry more coverage may be your best and safest option.

Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Coverage

Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage is not required in Colorado, but will provide you with additional protection if you are involved in an accident with a motorist with no insurance (an uninsured motorist) or with only the minimum insurance coverage required by law. If the at-fault driver has no insurance, or if their coverage limits are not sufficient to cover the full amount of your damages, uninsured/underinsured insurance coverage can help cover your medical bills, lost wages and other damages and losses incurred as a result of the accident. With the large number of drivers on Colorado’s roads and highways driving without insurance or with minimum coverage, while not mandatory, it is generally recommended that riders obtain uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage to protect themselves from suffering significant financial losses in the event of an accident .

Other Types of Optional Insurance Coverage

Other types of optional insurance coverage such as medical payments coverage, comprehensive coverage and collision coverage, are also available to to protect the interests of motorcyclists in Colorado in case of an accident. Medical payments coverage will help pay for your medical bills and other expenses arising out of you injuries in an accident. Collision coverage covers damages to your motorcycle from a collision with another rider or driver, and comprehensive coverage covers damage to your bike due to theft, vandalism, and other non-accident related causes.

If you are involved in a motorcycle accident, you need an effective Colorado motorcycle accident lawyer on your side. By working with an experienced attorney with expertise in the Colorado laws and regulations governing motorcycle accident cases, you can ensure that you take all of the necessary steps to protect your interests at every stage of your case. When you work with Safe Ride Law, we are with you every step of the way from reporting the accident, to filing a claim, to gathering the relevant evidence to support that claim, to navigating the claims process and negotiating with the insurance companies, and finally to taking your case to trial if the insurance companies refuse to agree to a fair settlement.

Filing an Accident Report

Following a motorcycle accident, you should immediately move to a safe place out of the line of traffic and then attempt to contact the police and emergency services to report the location and time of the accident and any injuries you may have sustained. This prompt reporting of the facts and circumstances surrounding the motorcycle accident will ensure that there is accurate and detailed account of the incident in the official records and that the report is created while those details are fresh in your mind. Your motorcycle accident lawyer can then use this information to begin an investigation of your case and to frame and support your personal injury claim.

Gathering Evidence to Support Your Claim

Relevant evidence in support of a motorcycle accident claim may include medical records and other available documentation of your medical expenses, evidence of lost wages, police reports, witness statements, photographs showing the damage to involved vehicles, and photographs of the accident scene. Your Colorado motorcycle accident attorney will use this evidence to establish liability and build a strong case. Gathering and preserving this critical evidence in support of your claim will assist your lawyer in getting you the maximum available compensation for your injuries.

Negotiating a Fair Settlement

Most motorcycle accident victims are unfamiliar with the many negotiating strategies employed by insurance companies to minimize their payouts. As a result, if they try to negotiate with the insurance companies on their own, they are often at a severe disadvantage in the negotiations. At Safe Ride Law, we will help you to gather and preserve evidence to validate your claim from witness statements to police reports to medical records and invoices, and any other available information that supports a fair settlement. Our Denver motorcycle accident lawyers are familiar with all of the insurance companies’ negotiating tactics and will work with you to estimate the potential value of your claim long before any negotiations take place.We will make sure that your story is told, and we will fight with the insurance companies to get you a fair settlement.

Common types of motorcycle accidents in Denver and across Colorado are rear-end collisions, left turn collisions and lane splitting accidents. The majority of Colorado motorcycle accidents also involve some form of speeding, reckless driving, distracted driving or driving under the influence. Any of these recurring types of motorcycle accidents can lead to devastating injuries for motorcyclists who lack the protection offered by cars. Skilled riders can avoid some traffic accidents by keeping a safe distance from other vehicles on the road, observing speed limits, maintaining their motorcycles in good working order, wearing protective gear, employing defensive riding techniques and remaining vigilant. But it is near impossible for motorcyclists to fully protect themselves against negligent or careless drivers. Working with a motorcycle accident attorney who understands the common types of motorcycle accidents and their contributing causes is critical to establishing liability, developing a strong case and successfully pursuing compensation for your injuries.

Rear-End Collisions

When you are on a motorcycle, being rear-ended by a car, even one traveling at a low rate of speed, can result in serious injuries and significant property damage. Common causes of rear-end collisions involving motorcyclists include distracted driving, inattentive driving, speeding, tailgating, motor vehicle defects such as transmission issues or faulty brakes, or hazardous road conditions.

Left Turn Collisions

Left turn collisions often occur when a driver or rider making a left turn underestimates the speed of oncoming traffic, incorrectly assesses the distance across the intersection, or fails to yield the right of way and is hit by an oncoming vehicle. Because they have the duty to yield, the driver or rider making the turn will usually be held liable for the accident.

Lane Splitting Accidents

Lane splitting involves a motorcyclist riding between two lanes of moving traffic traveling in the same direction. Lane splitting accidents most often occur as a result of either hazardous conditions on the roads or drivers or riders speeding, making unsafe lane changes, driving while intoxicated, or driving inattentively. Although lane splitting is Illegal in Colorado and many other states, when traffic is heavy, many motorcycle riders still choose to split the lanes to avoid congestion and delays.

Injuries from a motorcycle accident are often severe and devastating. Common injuries may include traumatic brain injuries and other severe head injuries, injuries to the neck or spinal cord, paralysis, bone fractures and loss of limbs, skin injuries/road rash, and other forms of disfigurement. If you have suffered a severe or disabling injury in a motorcycle accident, working with a qualified personal injury lawyer who understands both the nature and extent of your injuries and their probable impact on your life is critical to building a strong claim and negotiating a fair settlement.

The leading causes of death in motorcycle accidents are traumatic brain injuries and other head injuries. But any head injury can result in devastating long-term physical, cognitive and psychological impairments. Even where motorcycle accident victims survive a crash, they may still suffer from hemorrhaging, concussions, brain swelling, seizures, paralysis or comas. Statistics show that riding with a helmet can significantly increase the likelihood that a rider will survive a motorcycle accident. Wearing a helmet may also reduce the likelihood that a rider who survives a collision will sustain a traumatic brain injury or other serious head injury. While Colorado and many other states allow motorcyclists to ride legally without helmets, accident statistics demonstrate the value of helmets in protecting riders from this most common and most serious type of accident-related injury.

Neck and spinal cord injuries are also common in motorcycle accidents. Damage to the bones, tendons, ligaments, nerves and muscles of the neck from even minor neck injuries can result in significant pain and severely limited range of motion. If an accident victim’s spinal cord is compressed or otherwise compromised, this can result in a loss of sensation or even paralysis. Other common symptoms of spinal cord injuries include tingling, numbness and pain. Treatment for spinal cord injuries depends on the type and degree of the injury sustained but may include non-invasive treatment like medication, physical therapy, or other interventions that assist victims with pain management and promote mobility, or surgery where injuries are more serious.

Motorcyclists often suffer bone fractures and abrasions or friction burns (road rash/skin injuries) when they are involved in an accident, particularly if they are dragged or thrown from their bikes upon impact. In the case of serious skin damage, skin grafts or other surgery may be required. Severe and irreparable injury to a rider’s arms or legs may result in the loss of a limb. In serious motorcycle accidents, permanent disfigurement from burns, severe lacerations or facial injuries is not uncommon.