What is a car accident claim worth in Colorado?

Every rule below is quoted from Colorado law or a state agency, with a link. Checked September 17, 2026.

Colorado · At fault3 yearsto sue for injuries

The short answer

Nobody can price your claim from a web page, and any site that gives you one number is guessing. What we can show you is real: the amount insurers actually paid per claim in Colorado, and the Colorado rules that raise or lower what you collect. $36,314 was the average injury claim paid in Colorado in 2022.

Six questions, no sign up

Nothing you pick is sent anywhere or saved. The answer appears on this page.

Was anyone hurt?
Who caused the crash?
Does the other driver have insurance?
How bad is the car?
Did anyone miss work?
Did police write a report?

What claims paid in Colorado

Injury claims in Colorado averaged $36,314 each in 2022.

Car and property damage claims averaged $6,633.

Average amount paid per claim in Colorado, 2022. Source: NAIC 2022/2023 Auto Insurance Database Report.
Injury claim paid by the at fault driver's insurance$36,314
Car and property damage$6,633
Medical payments coverage, paid by your own policy$5,460
Collision coverage, paid by your own policy$7,060

These are averages of every claim insurers closed, from the largest to the smallest. A claim with a hospital stay sits far above the average, and a fender bender sits far below it.

What changes the number in Colorado

If you were partly at fault

Colorado uses modified comparative negligence. You can only recover damages if your share of fault is less than the other party's. If your fault is equal to or greater than theirs, you recover nothing.

“if such negligence was not as great as the negligence of the person against whom recovery is sought”

C.R.S. 13-21-111(1) and (3)

The other driver's policy limit is the ceiling

Colorado drivers must carry at least $25,000 of liability coverage per person, $50,000 per accident for injuries, and $15,000 for property damage.

“twenty-five thousand dollars to any one person in any one accident and fifty thousand dollars to all persons in any one accident”

C.R.S. 10-4-620

If the other driver has no insurance

Insurance companies must include uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage in your policy unless you reject it in writing.

“does not apply if the named insured rejects the coverage described in subsection (1)(a)(I) of this section in writing”

C.R.S. 10-4-609(1)(a)(I) and (II)

The deadline that ends the claim

You have 3 years to file a lawsuit for injuries from a car crash.

“shall be commenced within three years after the cause of action accrues, and not thereafter”

C.R.S. 13-80-101(1) intro and (1)(n)(I)

What a lawyer takes if you hire one

Colorado does not cap the percentage a lawyer can charge in a personal injury contingency fee case. The fee must be reasonable, and the contingent fee agreement must be in writing with specific disclosures.

“A lawyer shall not make an agreement for, charge, or collect an unreasonable fee or an unreasonable amount for expenses.”

Colo. RPC 1.5(a) and (c)

Sources on this page

Each one was opened and checked on September 17, 2026.

  1. C.R.S. 13-21-111(1) and (3)
  2. C.R.S. 10-4-620
  3. C.R.S. 10-4-609(1)(a)(I) and (II)
  4. C.R.S. 13-80-101(1) intro and (1)(n)(I)
  5. Colo. RPC 1.5(a) and (c)

Know My Claim is not a law firm or a government agency, and this page is not legal advice. Laws change, so check the linked source before you rely on a deadline.