UNINSURED & UNDERINSURED MOTORIST CLAIMS
Denver UM/UIM Insurance Claim Lawyer
When the driver who caused the crash has too little insurance, the next claim may be against coverage you already paid for.
Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage exists for exactly that problem. UM applies when the responsible driver has no applicable liability insurance or cannot be identified. UIM applies when liability insurance exists but is insufficient to cover the damages the insured is legally entitled to recover.
The claim is different from the one against the at-fault driver. UM/UIM is first-party insurance. The insured is asking their own carrier to provide a contractual benefit, while still having to prove the underlying driver’s fault and the amount of the loss.
Confirm the Coverage First.
Colorado requires automobile insurers to include UM/UIM coverage unless the named insured rejects it in writing. C.R.S. § 10-4-609. The insurer must also offer UM/UIM limits equal to the insured’s bodily-injury liability limits.
Start with the declarations page. Look for “UM,” “UIM,” “UM/UIM,” or “Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Bodily Injury.” Then read the policy and endorsements. If the declarations show no UM/UIM coverage, ask for the written rejection rather than assuming coverage was validly declined.
The named insured may have selected lower UM/UIM limits than the liability limits, or rejected the coverage altogether. Whether an insurer obtained an effective rejection can become its own coverage issue when the documents do not match the policy history.
Add Coverage Above Liability.
Colorado changed the old underinsured-motorist structure. C.R.S. § 10-4-609(1)(c) now provides that UM/UIM coverage is in addition to legal liability coverage and may not be reduced by a setoff from legal liability insurance, medical-payments coverage, health insurance, or other UM/UIM insurance.
That means an at-fault driver’s liability payment does not simply get subtracted from the injured person’s UM/UIM limits. If the proven damages exceed the liability limits, available UIM coverage can sit above those liability limits, up to the amount of damages and the applicable UM/UIM limits.
The rule does not create double recovery. It also does not make a UIM carrier responsible for a gap created when an insured voluntarily settles the liability claim for less than the available liability limit. Colorado law focuses UIM on damages exceeding the available liability limits, not merely the amount actually collected from the other carrier.
Search Every Applicable Policy.
The policy covering the injured person’s own vehicle is not always the only UM/UIM policy that matters. Coverage can follow a person rather than simply the vehicle occupied at the time of the crash.
Depending on the policy language and insured relationships, a claimant may qualify under coverage issued to a spouse, parent, or other resident relative. Someone struck while walking or cycling, or injured while riding as a passenger in someone else’s car, can therefore have UM/UIM coverage without making a claim under a policy on the vehicle involved in the crash.
Multiple applicable UM/UIM coverages can also matter, and § 10-4-609(1)(c) prohibits reducing available UM/UIM coverage through a setoff from other UM/UIM insurance. A single policy or endorsement issued for one premium covering multiple vehicles may, however, be limited to applying once per accident. Coverage has to be mapped policy by policy rather than multiplied automatically.
That makes a household-policy search important. Identify the injured person’s policies, the policies of resident relatives, the vehicle occupied, and any other policy under which the person might meet the definition of an insured.
Protect the Liability Settlement.
Do not sign the at-fault driver’s release without first checking the UM/UIM policy.
Many policies contain notice and consent-to-settle provisions designed to protect the UM/UIM carrier’s potential subrogation rights against the responsible driver. Settling and releasing the responsible party without complying with an applicable provision can jeopardize the later UM/UIM claim.
Consent is different from exhaustion. Colorado does not permit a UIM policy to require the insured to actually collect every dollar of the at-fault driver’s liability limits before UIM coverage can apply.
The practical sequence is therefore deliberate: identify the liability limits, notify the UM/UIM carrier, review any consent requirement, obtain written consent when required, and only then execute the liability release.
Prove the Missing Driver.
Hit-and-run claims are UM claims even when the responsible driver is never identified. A “phantom vehicle” can also cause a crash without physically striking the insured vehicle — for example, by forcing another driver off the road.
Colorado appellate courts have rejected policy provisions making physical contact a condition of UM coverage, and have rejected clauses requiring independent corroborating evidence beyond the claimant’s testimony in a no-contact hit-and-run case. Colorado’s UM statute itself contains no such corroboration requirement.
That does not eliminate the need for proof. Report the incident promptly. Preserve dash-camera video, witnesses, 911 records, surveillance, debris, photographs, partial plate information, and any description of the vehicle or driver. A phantom-driver claim still requires evidence that an unidentified motorist caused the crash.
Watch the UM/UIM Clock.
Colorado has a specific limitations statute for these claims: C.R.S. § 13-80-107.5. The deadline should not be calculated from the ordinary contract statute, or assumed to be identical to the lawsuit against the at-fault driver.
A UM action or qualifying arbitration demand generally must be commenced within three years after the UM cause of action accrues. If the underlying bodily-injury claim against the uninsured driver was timely preserved by filing suit, the statute can permit the UM action within two years after the insured knows that the particular driver has no applicable insurance. The insured never receives less than the initial three-year period under that provision.
UIM has a separate extension. A UIM action or qualifying arbitration demand generally must also begin within three years after accrual. But if the underlying liability claim is timely preserved by filing suit, or by payment of the liability settlement or judgment within the underlying limitations period, the UIM action can be commenced within two years after the insured receives that payment.
The word “payment” matters. Reaching a settlement agreement near the end of the underlying limitations period is not the same as receiving the settlement payment for purposes of the statutory extension. A claim notice or demand letter to the UM/UIM carrier also should not be assumed to satisfy the statute’s requirement to commence an action or make a qualifying arbitration demand.
Keep MedPay Separate.
Medical-payments coverage is different from UM/UIM. MedPay pays qualifying accident-related medical expenses without requiring proof that another driver was uninsured or underinsured.
For most Colorado automobile policies subject to C.R.S. § 10-4-635, medical-payments coverage is included unless the named insured rejects it in the manner the statute permits, and MedPay is primary to health insurance for covered accident-related treatment.
MedPay does not replace UM/UIM, and Colorado’s no-setoff rule prevents a UM/UIM carrier from simply reducing available UM/UIM benefits by the amount paid under MedPay. The coverages perform different jobs.
Your Insurer Owes Duties.
A UM/UIM claim is a first-party insurance claim. That means the carrier evaluating liability and damages is also the insured’s own contracting insurer.
The carrier can dispute fault, causation, damages, coverage, or the amount owed when it has a reasonable basis to do so. It must still comply with the duties Colorado imposes on first-party insurers. Insurance disputes and bad faith addresses unreasonable delay or denial and the separate statutory and common-law remedies that can apply.
Property Insurance Claims addresses first-party disputes involving homes and other insured property rather than automobile UM/UIM benefits.
Michael Rex Checks Every Policy.
Rex Legal treats UM/UIM as both an injury claim and an insurance-coverage investigation. Michael Rex remains directly involved in proving the underlying crash, identifying every potentially applicable policy, protecting the liability settlement, and evaluating the first-party insurer’s handling of the claim.
UM/UIM Insurance Questions.
What is UM/UIM insurance?
UM/UIM coverage protects an insured from bodily-injury losses caused by a financially irresponsible driver. UM applies when the responsible driver has no applicable insurance or cannot be identified. UIM applies when the driver’s liability insurance is insufficient for the damages proved. The claim is made under an insurance policy covering the injured person, not against the responsible driver’s liability carrier.
How do I know whether I have UM/UIM coverage?
Check the automobile policy’s declarations page for uninsured or underinsured motorist bodily-injury coverage, then review the endorsements. Colorado requires UM/UIM coverage unless the named insured rejects it in writing under C.R.S. § 10-4-609. If the policy shows no coverage, request the rejection document and the policy history from the insurer rather than assuming that UM/UIM was validly waived.
Is using UM/UIM insurance “suing myself”?
No. The claim is against an insurance company under coverage purchased for exactly this situation; the insured is not suing themselves. Colorado also restricts insurers from taking specified adverse underwriting action because of accidents that were not the insured’s fault. General rate changes can still affect a policy, but making a claim on coverage you paid for is what the coverage is for.
What happens if the at-fault driver has only Colorado’s minimum liability limits?
UIM coverage may apply when the damages exceed the responsible driver’s available liability limits. Colorado’s current law does not allow the UIM carrier to reduce the amount of available UIM coverage through a setoff for the liability insurance payment. The coverage sits above the liability limits, subject to the damages actually proved and the applicable UIM limits. C.R.S. § 10-4-609(1)(c).
Does UM coverage apply after a hit-and-run or phantom-vehicle crash?
It can. Colorado UM coverage includes losses caused by unidentified hit-and-run motorists, and Colorado appellate decisions reject a physical-contact requirement for bodily-injury UM coverage. A no-contact phantom-vehicle claim also cannot be defeated solely by a policy requirement for independent corroborating testimony. Liability still has to be proved, making witnesses, video, police documentation, and other contemporaneous evidence especially important.
Can I settle with the at-fault driver’s insurer before making my UIM claim?
Potentially, but check the UIM policy first. A consent-to-settle provision can protect the UIM carrier’s subrogation rights, and settling without required consent can jeopardize coverage. Colorado does not require actual exhaustion of every liability dollar before UIM can apply, but that is different from releasing the responsible driver without following an enforceable consent provision. Written consent should be addressed before the liability release is signed.
How long do I have to bring a Colorado UM/UIM claim?
C.R.S. § 13-80-107.5 supplies a specific UM/UIM limitations scheme. Both UM and UIM claims generally begin with a three-year period after accrual, with different statutory extensions when the underlying claim is properly preserved. For UIM, the extension can run two years from receipt of payment of a timely liability settlement or judgment. The exact sequence matters, so the deadline should be calculated from the claim history rather than from the accident date alone.
Can I be covered under a relative’s UM/UIM policy?
Possibly. UM/UIM coverage protects people who qualify as insureds under the applicable policy, and that can include resident relatives depending on the policy language and household relationships. Coverage can also apply when the insured was a passenger, pedestrian, or cyclist rather than driving the insured vehicle. Every household automobile policy should be reviewed before concluding that the injured person’s own declarations page is the only available coverage.
Tell Us What Happened.
If the driver who caused the crash had no insurance or not enough insurance, Michael Rex can identify the UM/UIM policies that may apply, protect the underlying settlement, calculate the statutory deadline, and evaluate the insurer’s handling of the claim. Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.