Getting the right type of insurance versus the minimum amount of insurance required can mean a huge difference in what happens after a car crash in Colorado. People working on a tight budget often go for the lowest amount of coverage they can get, knowing that it means saving money every month—however, this also puts you at serious risk of a lawsuit should you cause a major collision. One topic that causes lots of confusion for consumers in Colorado is the idea of personal liability coverage and personal injury protection. Learn more about these options and how they may affect your case. For more personalized assistance with your car accident claim, call Colorado Accident Attorneys at 303-567-7981.
Regardless of the insurance company you work with, it is crucial to make sure you always have enough insurance to meet Colorado’s minimum requirements. In general, you must have $25,000 of bodily injury coverage for any individual in an accident and $50,000 of bodily injury coverage per accident. You must also have $15,000 of property damage coverage.
What Is Personal Liability Coverage?
Personal liability coverage is the insurance that pays for other people’s losses when you cause an accident. If you are found to be at fault for an accident, you absolutely want your insurance policy to cover the victims’ losses. If you have $25,000 of bodily injury coverage per person and someone sustains an injury that causes hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses, the insurance company won’t eat that cost—the victim may very well take you to court for everything your policy does not cover.
Your personal liability coverage will likely cover the vast majority of accidents caused by all individuals covered by the policy. However, there are limitations. If an individual intentionally causes an accident or intentionally hits someone, their policy will likely not pay out once their company’s investigation uncovers this fact.
If you cause a car accident, your personal liability coverage will ideally cover everything. You should expect your rates to increase as a result of the crash, however.
The Role of Personal Injury Protection
Personal injury protection is a completely different type of coverage, and in Colorado, this term is basically left over from the state’s time as a no-fault insurance state. During that time—prior to 2003—drivers had to have personal injury protection coverage as part of their auto insurance package. Personal injury protection covers the driver’s medical expenses and other accident-related losses. However, personal injury protection is no longer available in Colorado, thanks to its tort-based auto insurance system.
MedPay has replaced personal injury protection in Colorado. MedPay is essentially medical payments coverage, making it slightly different from personal injury protection. But like personal injury protection, it covers the driver’s expenses regardless of who is at fault for the accident. Insurance policies automatically come with $5,000 of MedPay coverage. Note, though, that this doesn’t mean it’s required in Colorado; you can opt out of it when you sign up for an insurance policy. You can also choose to get more MedPay coverage, which is a wise idea considering the cost of medical care.
Your Insurance After a Crash
What does this mean when you’re involved in a car crash? If you are at fault for the collision, personal liability coverage will cover the other party’s property damage, medical expenses, and other losses. Your MedPay coverage, assuming you haven’t opted out of it, will cover your medical expenses.
If the other party is at fault for the accident, your insurance isn’t quite as important. You will likely seek compensation from them for your medical expenses, property damage, pain and suffering, and other accident-related losses. At that point, what you receive will depend largely on your car accident lawyer’s negotiation skills and the other party’s insurance limits.
Was Your Crash Caused by Someone Else? Call Colorado Accident Attorneys Now
You shouldn’t be left bearing the brunt of your accident expenses if someone else is to blame for the crash. Let us advocate for you and fight for every dollar you deserve. Set up a consultation with a car accident lawyer at Colorado Accident Attorneys now by calling us at 303-567-7981 or reaching out to us online.
