Welcome To Colorado Law Updates...
As to insurance policies issued or renewed after January 1, 2008, CRS Section 10-4-609 was changed to permit the injured party to make a claim not only against the wrongdoer but also against the injured party's own insurance with underinsured motorist coverage (UIM) regardless of the dollar limits of the liability coverage or of the injured party's own UIM dollar limits. This means in the insurance industry all applicable insurance policies must be allowed to "stack".
Click here to read more about CRS 10-4-609.
CRS Section 10-3-1115 and Section 10-3-1116 now allow dollar recovery against your own insurance coverage for med-pay, uninsured motorist (UM), and underinsured motorist (UIM) when the insurer's delay or denial was unreasonable. An insurer's delay or denial in authorizing payment of a covered benefit is unreasonable if the insurer delays or denies without a reasonable basis. The penalty of such unreasonable delay or denial is two times the covered benefit, reasonable attorney fees, and costs.
Click here to read more about CRS Section 10-3-1115.
Click here to read more about CRS Section 10-3-1116.
CRS 13-17-202- In prior years, an insurance offer of judgment was often a threat by the defense insurance industry to say to the Plaintiff if you don't get a judgment in excess of our "low ball" offer of judgment, you will get stuck with all the defense costs and all of your own costs in the lawsuit.
After July 1, 2008 the significant change is if you are threatened by an insurance offer of settlement, and you have a jury verdict award in your favor you will be allowed to collect your actual costs that accrued prior to the insurance offer of settlement even where the jury award was less than what was offered by the Defense.
However, without the wise assistance of counsel, there are still pitfalls and risks of getting stuck with defense costs in the tens of thousands of dollars at trial.
Click here to read more about CRS Section 13-17-202.
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